Stefan Knighton Joins Karman Space & Defense as Company's First Chief Information and Artificial Intelligence Officer
- Expanded role reflects the need to meet the demands of a technology-forward space and defense industry
- Industry leader brings two decades of digital transformation and information technology expertise from Kyndryl, Lockheed Martin and Fujifilm
- New partnership with Growth Signals, the generative AI platform founded by Carnegie Mellon professor and entrepreneur Sean Ammirati, purpose-built to help enterprises accelerate innovation and translate emerging technology insights into actionable strategy
Karman Space & Defense ("Karman", "Karman Holdings, Inc." or "the Company") (NYSE:KRMN) today announced Stefan Knighton has joined the Company as Chief Information and Artificial Intelligence Officer (CIAIO), effective as of June 1. The appointment of Knighton to this expanded role reflects Karman's commitment to building the digital and AI infrastructure required to operate at the pace and precision that national security and space exploration missions demand.
The CIAIO role is the first of its kind at Karman, an evolution of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) position that incorporates ownership of Artificial Intelligence and will be chartered to unlock its full potential for the company, customers and shareholders. In this capacity, Knighton will lead IT strategy and operations alongside the Company's overall AI strategy; governance; the evaluation, testing and selection of tools and models; and implementation decisions.
Knighton will oversee Karman's Business Systems organization, including the continued enterprise-wide deployment of the Karman Operating System, the unified business platform designed to enable speed, efficiency, and a cyber-secure posture across all of Karman's facilities and operations.
"We're continuing to build Karman as a different kind of space and defense company," said Chief Executive Officer Jon Rambeau. "That requires leaning into AI strategy and adoption, especially as our customers expect increasingly complex solutions, delivered quickly with greater ability to flex and adapt in response to dynamic environmental conditions.
"The CIAIO role underscores Karman's view that technology infrastructure and AI strategy are tightly linked – and the companies that get it right will be the ones that get ahead."
Knighton brings a decades-long record of increasingly senior roles in information technology and enterprise transformation to Karman, with expertise that includes consolidating fragmented legacy environments, integrating technology platforms across complex operating models, supporting acquisition integration, and establishing Centers of Excellence to sustain value as businesses scale.
"I'm excited to join Karman Space & Defense as its inaugural Chief Information and Artificial Intelligence Officer, especially as we enter an industry-wide sea change in how business gets done," said Knighton. "By aligning technology strategy, AI and business growth, we can simplify, modernize and move out on the work customers rely on today and are planning for the future."
Most recently, Knighton led Enterprise Transformation initiatives for Kyndryl, an industry leader in providing IT infrastructure services that support enterprise digital performance. He previously served as Vice President, CIO and Digital Transformation Executive for Lockheed Martin's Missiles and Fire Control business area.
Knight also brings more than a decade of commercial information technology and supply chain experience from his tenure at Fujifilm.
Knighton's appointment comes on the heels of the company's new partnership with Growth Signals, the generative AI platform founded by Carnegie Mellon professor and entrepreneur Sean Ammirati, purpose-built to help enterprises accelerate innovation and translate emerging technology insights into actionable strategy.
"This investment promises to help us unlock the power of information across our enterprise," said Rambeau. "With Stefan in his role and the thoughtful addition of platforms and tools like Growth Signals, we're intentionally strengthening our digital backbone to better support the priority our customers are placing on speed and agility."
ABOUT KARMAN SPACE & DEFENSE
Karman Space & Defense is a leader in the rapid design, development and production of critical, next-generation system solutions that align with the U.S. Department of War's core mission priorities and the nation's accelerating demand for access to space. Building on nearly 50 years of success, we deliver Payload & Protection Systems, Hydro/Aerodynamic Interstage Systems, and Propulsion & Launch Systems to more than 80 prime contractors supporting more than 130 space and defense programs. Karman is headquartered in Huntington Beach, CA, with multiple facilities across the United States. For more information, visit our website, www.karman-sd.com
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This announcement may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. We intend all forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and by the use of forward-looking words such as "expect," "expectation," "believe," "anticipate," "may," "could," "intend," "belief," "plan," "estimate," "target," "predict," "likely," "seek," "project," "model," "ongoing," "will," "should," "forecast," "outlook" or similar terminology. These statements are based on and reflect our current expectations, estimates, assumptions and/or projections, our perception of historical trends and current conditions, as well as other factors that we believe are appropriate and reasonable under the circumstances. Forward-looking statements are neither predictions nor guarantees of future events, circumstances or performance and are inherently subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated by those statements. There can be no assurance that our expectations, estimates, assumptions and/or projections, including with respect to the future earnings and performance or capital structure of Karman, will prove to be correct or that any of our expectations, estimates or projections will be achieved.
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