PNNL

Jeff Evans serves as a program manager within the Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics Division of the National Security Directorate at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), where he leads multidisciplinary teams of engineers and scientists tackling some of the nation’s most complex security challenges. A cornerstone of Evans’s portfolio is advancing border security technologies—developing and deploying AI-enabled solutions that directly enhance U.S. homeland protection capabilities.

With over 25 years of experience managing high-impact technology programs across the federal sector, Evans has led the operationalization of advanced analytics, cloud architectures, and machine learning algorithms in mission-critical environments. His leadership has driven pioneering efforts in non-intrusive inspection technologies, including X-ray, computed tomography, millimeter wave, and radiation detection systems—key pillars in the detection of threats at U.S. borders and ports of entry.

Evans’s work has directly supported multiple components of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, with a particular focus on U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). His projects have resulted in several first-of-their-kind deployments of automated threat recognition algorithms—delivering operational AI systems that are now enhancing detection, throughput, and security effectiveness at the border.

In addition to border security, Evans’s portfolio spans cybersecurity, critical infrastructure protection, international energy resilience, and big data analytics, reflecting his broad expertise in national security technology modernization. Since joining PNNL in 2010 following a successful private-sector career supporting the intelligence community and Department of Defense, Evans has remained at the forefront of applying emerging technologies to protect the homeland.

BA, business administration, Western Washington University