Sam Linn is the head of government strategy at Gecko Robotics. He also serves as the defense advisor at Exia Labs. Sam helped start Gecko’s defense business and has served as the head of government strategy, leading both government affairs and business development for the DoD business. Sam leads aerospace go-to-market in both B2B and B2G efforts. He excels at connecting the dots between congressional authorizations and appropriations, DoD capability requirements, policy and budget, and end-user problem sets. Before joining Gecko, Sam was an Army Ranger who deployed six times to combat and commanded Infantry and Artillery units in support of the Global War on Terror. During his Army career, he was awarded two decorations for valor and many other commendations for his service to the nation. Sam earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the United States Military Academy at West Point, received his Master in Strategic Studies at the Army War College, and studied machine learning at Johns Hopkins. He is also a published author on risk and decision-making. In his personal time, Sam is an ultra-endurance athlete - he placed 6th at the David E. Grange Best Ranger competition (60 miles, 60 hours, 60 lbs), completed the JFK 50 Miler, and climbed a rope the equivalent height of the twin towers (2730 feet) to commemorate the 10th anniversary of September 11th.