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NORTH AMERICAN Newsline AUGUST 30, 2024 | The Indian Eye 33

D’Souza is also the inaugural direc- Yisroel Brumer, co-founder and
tor of the Yale Center for the Science CEO of Defcon AI, welcomed Upad-
of Cannabis and Cannabinoids, and hyaya’s addition to the executive team.
director of the Schizophrenia Neuro- “He is an accomplished leader whose
biology Research Group at Yale (SN- skills in financial management, ac-
RGY). He was previously the Albert E. counting, business development, con-
Kent Professor of Psychiatry at YSM. tracting and corporate governance will
“Neuropsychiatric disorders ac- be critical as Defcon AI enters an excit-
count for a significant cause of glob- ing phase of growth and maturation.”
al disease burden,” D’Souza said. In his new role, Upadhyaya will
“While many treatments for these conditions exist, there remains a great need to be responsible for the strategic planning, implementation, and management of
develop treatments that work faster, better, last longer and are safe.” all finance activities for DEFCON AI, including budgeting, forecasting, report-
D’Souza said he is “deeply honored” to receive the endowed professorship. ing, risk and governance, as well as negotiations.
The generous support from Sodhi, he said, “will allow me to devote more “I am honored to be part of such an elite team of innovators and am excited
time and effort toward studying psychedelics and other drugs. On a more per- to help shape the financial strategies that will ensure their long-term success and
sonal note, that this endowed chair position is the first in the school of medicine allow them to continue their important work,” said Vivek Upadhyaya.
to be supported and named after someone from India, my country of origin, Upadhyaya brings to Defcon AI experience in the defense, aerospace and
makes it even more special.” technology sectors. He previously managed financial and management strategy
D’Souza received his medical degree (M.B.B.S.) from St. John’s Medical planning and execution at Leonardo Electronics, IAI North America, Northrop
College in Bangalore, India, before completing his residency in psychiatry at Grumman and Orbital ATK.
State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn and his post- Earlier in his career, Upadhyaya worked in various roles at 3M, Kellogg’s,
doctoral fellowship in the Schizophrenia Biological Research Program at Yale Amgen and Honeywell. He graduated from Michigan State University with a
School of Medicine. bachelor’s degree in economics and holds a master’s in finance from MSU-Eli
Broad College of Business.
Defcon AI is an insights company, providing modeling, simulation and
VIVEK UPADHYAYA analysis provider that utilizes artificial intelligence to deliver tools in support of
The new CFO at Defcon AI Air Mobility Command to explore AI deployment to accelerate and improve
military transportation and logistics operations. It is currently working with the

airlift planning.
ivek Upadhyaya has joined Defcon AI as chief financial officer, respon-
sible for strategic planning and execution as well as leadership of all
Vcompany finance activities. To read more about Indian diaspora and Global Indians, log on to and follow
Defcon AI said Upadhyaya most recently worked at Mercury Systems as
vice president and CFO of the mission systems segment. our website www.TheIndianEYE.com

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