George Barnes

George Barnes is the President of Red Cell Partners’ Cyber Practice. Leveraging Red Cell’s venture studio model, he guides the pursuit and early phase development of cybersecurity startups for the commercial and government sectors. George also chairs the National Cryptologic Foundation Board and is engaged in advisory activities supporting the US Navy, the Institute for Defense Analyses, Auburn University’s McCrary Institute, Virginia Tech’s National Security Institute, the Aspen Institute, Billington Cybersecurity, and various companies. He served as the Deputy Director of the US National Security Agency (NSA) from April 2017 through September 2023, capping off a 36-year NSA career. George holds a University of Maryland Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering.