Les Aker

Les Aker has spent four decades inside the most demanding technology environments in the world — federal intelligence programs, national security laboratories, and the earliest days of commercial cybersecurity. He doesn't teach AI from a textbook. He teaches it as someone who has been at the frontier of computing since before most AI tools existed.

His career runs from the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory — where he contributed to the development of Onion Routing (the precursor to TOR), one of the world's first commercial firewalls, and early naval cryptographic key distribution systems — to co-founding companies that were acquired by Symantec, EMC, and Flexera. He currently serves as CTO of the South Carolina Emerging Technology Association and as Director of Cryptographic Research for an Australian data-integrity firm.

Les has been a hands-on educator and mentor throughout his career. He's served on the Advisory Board for Computer Technology at Technical College of the Lowcountry, mentored small business owners through SCORE, organized Beaufort's blockchain meetup community for three years, and advised the Department of Homeland Security on cybersecurity architecture. When he explains AI in a workshop, he draws on a career spent translating complex technical systems into practical outcomes for real organizations.

His current focus is helping South Carolina businesses understand where AI intersects with cybersecurity — what the real risks are, what the real opportunities are, and how to move forward without making expensive mistakes. In a room full of people learning AI for the first time, he's the person who's been operating at its frontier for longer than most attendees have been in the workforce.