Former U.S. Representative Will Hurd, a cybersecurity specialist with strong ties to the government contracting field and a two-time Wash100 Award winner, announced his presidential campaign Thursday on “CBS Mornings.”
Hurd represented Texas’ 23rd congressional district from 2015 to 2021. During his time in office, he introduced several pieces of legislation surrounding emerging technologies, including the bipartisan Internet of Things Cybersecurity Improvement Act, which was cosponsored by Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Ill., and signed into law in 2020. He also collaborated with Kelly on the earlier Federal CIO Authorization Act of 2018, which was designed to elevate the federal chief information officer role.
In 2019, Hurd was named a ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence’s Subcommittee on Intelligence Modernization and Readiness, where he worked to equip intelligence agencies with modern technologies and other resources necessary to carry out their missions.
Hurd’s career began with the Central Intelligence Agency, where he served as an undercover officer. After nine years with the organization, Hurd entered the private sector as a partner at Crumpton Group, a strategic advisory firm, and later, he spent over five years at cybersecurity-focused company FusionX.
Within the GovCon industry, Hurd is known for his work in cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, both of which he prioritized throughout his political career. In both 2018 and 2019, Hurd received the Wash100 Award – Executive Mosaic’s annual recognition of the most impactful leaders in the field – for his technology advocacy and related policy efforts.
Hurd has stayed active in the community since his retirement from Congress. Currently, he is a member of OpenAI’s board, which he joined in 2021. He is also a managing director at Allen & Company and a trustee of the German Marshall Fund.
