Erik Prince

Businessman, investor, founder of Blackwater

Erik Prince is an American businessman, former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, in 1997, aged just 28, he established Blackwater in 1997 (aged just 28), which became a major private military contractor for the U.S. government, particularly during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. After selling Blackwater in 2010, Prince has been involved in security consulting, logistics, and defence ventures worldwide, including operations in Africa and the Middle East. Today, Erik heads Frontier Resource Group, a private equity firm, and remains active politically as a donor to conservative and libertarian causes.

So why did we invite him on?

Over the last one hundred years, we have seen unprecedented technological development, and in no area has this progress been as crucial as war. Today, we find ourselves on the frontier of a new world, the advent of which might dwarf the likes of gunpowder and radar as measures of military paradigm shift. Erik spent over two decades in the field, accruing a wealth of insider knowledge and, thus, an invaluable perspective on it. The scale of the potential change is almost overwhelming, and we wanted someone who could put it into focus.

What did we learn?

There were so many paths the interview could have taken. Erik has broad expertise in all things military, and we were spoiled for plentiful springs to draw from.

As long-time CEO of one of America’s primary military contractors, Erik’s knowledge of war technology might be one of the most complete in the world. That alone would have warranted a long-form discussion. AI, drones, and the increasing sophistication of intelligence-gathering apparatuses… are they making the world more peaceful, or more fraught? Which coming advancement does Erik think is the “biggest pendulum swing in military change since Genghis Khan put stirrups on horses?”