Navy CTO Justin Fanelli Wins 2026 Wash100 Award for Driving Emerging Technology Adoption
Executive Mosaic is pleased to honor Justin Fanelli, chief technology officer of the Department of the Navy, with a 2026 Wash100 Award. This marks his first time receiving the distinction, highlighting his role in directing the Navy’s technology strategy and helping to scale the procurement of critical emerging technologies.
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“I’m excited to honor CTO Fanelli with his first Wash100 Award for his work directing the Navy’s tech strategy to procure essential emerging technologies at scale. CTO Fanelli has spent his entire career serving the nation with leadership positions at Naval Information Warfare Systems, PEO Digital and now the Navy as CTO,” said Jim Garrettson, CEO of Executive Mosaic and founder of the Wash100 Award.
“He demonstrated leadership shortly after becoming CTO by outlining priority technology areas, including AI and autonomy, quantum technologies and cyberspace. This signaled to industry where they should prioritize investments. CTO Fanelli has spent his career helping the Navy and the DOW acquire the mission-critical technologies to win decisively in combat, and I look forward to what he achieves in 2026,” Garrettson continued.
Who Is Justin Fanelli?
Justin Fanelli is a senior government technology leader with a distinguished career advancing digital transformation, data strategy and enterprise IT modernization across the Department of the Navy and defense health and research organizations. Aside from serving as the DON CTO, he is also the technical director of the Program Executive Office for Digital and Enterprise Services, or PEO Digital, where he is focused on helping drive measurable, technology-enabled mission outcomes and accelerating the secure modernization of enterprise IT infrastructure. In these roles, he has emphasized harnessing public-private collaboration to deliver faster innovation and higher-value investment outcomes across naval operations.
Earlier in his career, Fanelli also held several senior leadership and technical positions across the Department of War. These include chief data architect for defense health, technical director for Navy manpower, personnel, training and education, and executive lead for the Navy’s digital transformation initiatives in 5G and DevSecOps. He also served as a service chiefs fellow at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, principal engineer for Navy Enterprise Business Systems and the War Department’s chief systems engineer for command and control.
He serves on various national science and technology organizations, and government and industry boards, including Hupside, the U.S. Technology Modernization Fund, AI-in-Gov and The SageHouse. In addition to his government service, Fanelli teaches graduate courses at Georgetown University and has lectured at leading institutions such as Harvard, Stanford and MIT.
Fanelli was one of the speakers at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2025 Navy Summit, where he joined other government and industry leaders in discussing the impact of AI on national security and economic growth.
Why Is Justin Fanelli Winning the 2026 Wash100 Award?
Fanelli is earning the 2026 Wash100 Award for his transformative leadership in advancing the Department of the Navy’s technology modernization, investment strategy and enterprise transformation. From identifying priority areas to guiding industry investment signals, Fanelli has helped strengthen the Navy’s ability to acquire the innovations needed to maintain an operational advantage.
Technology Modernization & Innovation Strategy
The DON CTO has driven the adoption of cutting-edge technologies across the Navy, emphasizing artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, C5ISR and advanced cybersecurity. He issued guidance on priority technology areas, or PTAs, and established adaptive roadmaps that align with strategic investment horizons, accelerating technology adoption, enhancing information advantage and strengthening the department’s long-term posture. These initiatives are supported by the Innovation Adoption Kit, a framework launched in 2025 that helps commanders and program managers take emerging technologies from evaluation to enterprise-scale deployment.
Acquisition & Commercial Partnering
In addition, the Navy has embraced commercial off-the-shelf technologies while fostering commercial partnerships, including with startups and small businesses, which Fanelli has championed for years through programs such as the Small Business Innovation Research program.
“We have so much to learn, adopt and leverage from industry partners to get the outcomes from AI that our warfighters deserve,” Fanelli said.
Enterprise IT Transformation & Cybersecurity Innovation
The Navy has also completed its Enterprise Resource Planning system migration, unifying finance, supply chain and logistics functions for nearly 100,000 users. This modernization effort, combined with a zero trust cybersecurity implementation that reduced legacy networks from over 300 to 179, has strengthened fleet readiness, accelerated decision-making and enhanced operational resilience across the department.
What Is the Department of the Navy?
The Department of the Navy is a military department within the Department of Defense responsible for organizing, training and equipping naval forces to support national defense and global operations. The DON maintains a global presence with prepared sailors, ships, aircraft and submarines, operating independently of land-based support abroad. Its role is to sustain peace, deter hostile actions and protect the nation’s way of life, while preserving economic prosperity and keeping the seas open and free.
Executive Mosaic congratulates Justin Fanelli on his first Wash100 Award!
Vote for Fanelli in the 2026 Wash100 popular vote contest to celebrate his leadership and contributions.