From Sleep to Strategy: Cyber’s Human Future featuring John Koester

Title: 

From Sleep to Strategy: Cyber’s Human Future featuring John Koester

Summary: 

In this episode, Nate and Lior travel to Atlanta to sit down with John Koester, CISO of Graphic Packaging International, to explore what AI means for the human side of cybersecurity. From reimagining compliance and detection workflows to prioritizing creativity and employee development, John offers a grounded vision for how AI can return time to the people doing the work—and why that matters more than ever.

He discusses the pressing need for relationship-building inside large organizations, the risks of fast-moving attackers using AI, and how cyber leaders must prepare their teams to become true business partners. This conversation touches on architectural evolution, risk quantification, and the enduring importance of human engagement.

 

Impactful Moments

00:00 – Introduction

02:17 – AI gives time back for human focus

04:09 – AI can boost response effectiveness

06:00 – Attackers use AI to scale threats

08:03 – “Fire against fire” in cyber defense 09:00 – Building trust through employee outreach 10:29 – Innovation comes from unexpected voices

13:02 – AI and the future of compliance 14:00 – Toward quantifying real dollar risk

16:13 – Rethinking architecture in the AI era 18:38 – “The current model is kind of broken”

 

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