Dr. Eric Vorm helps defense technology companies, research institutions, and government clients navigate the human side of AI and autonomous systems by helping translate complex science into proposals, programs, and decisions that resonate with military leaders and policy audiences. He brings a rare combination of operational military experience, defense research leadership, and deep technical expertise in human-machine interaction.
Dr. Vorm began his military career enlisted in the Navy as a Fleet Marine Force Corpsman assigned to Second Marine Division. He deployed to Iraq with Marine Special Operations Command in 2009, providing advanced trauma care in combat operations. He was subsequently commissioned as an Aerospace Experimental Psychologist, completed flight training, and earned his wings of gold in 2013. Dr. Vorm’s personal experience spans military medicine, aviation, human performance, and human-machine teaming research.
Dr. Vorm served in senior scientific and acquisition roles across the DoD research enterprise, including as Deputy Director of the Laboratory for Autonomous Systems Research at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Evaluation Team Lead for DARPA’s Explainable AI (XAI) program, Design of Experiments Lead for DARPA’s Enhanced Design for Graceful Extensibility (EDGE) program, and Capabilities Portfolio Manager for the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Autonomy Community of Interest. He retired from active duty in January 2026 as the Senior Cognitive Systems Engineer at the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division.
Beyond his technical consulting work, Dr. Vorm is an experienced workshop facilitator and science communicator who helps researchers and innovators prepare their work for high-stakes military and policy audiences.
Dr. Vorm is the founder and principal of ES Vorm & Associates, LLC. He holds a B.S. in Psychology from Indiana University, an M.S. in Experimental Psychology from the University of North Texas, and a Ph.D. in Human-Computer Interaction from Indiana University, and maintains an active Top Secret/SCI clearance.