Solutions Engineer · Washington, DC

Translating emerging tech into mission advantage for national security.

I'm Tilak Bhatnagar. A former U.S. Air Force officer and NSA Red Team lead, I now bridge the gap between complex data platforms and federal agency requirements.

See my work Get in touch
20Technical personnel led at NSA
$3.67MR&D investment advised
50+Members trained annually
GS-14Equivalent leadership billet
About

Mission success is built on secure, actionable data.

I serve as a Solutions Engineer on Peregrine’s Federal Team, drawing on my background as a U.S. Air Force officer to secure national security systems and prototype AI workflows for DoD customers.

My career has spanned conducting NSA Red Team ethical hacking operations to advising USAF leaders on tech adoption. I specialize in translating high-level mission requirements into technical prototypes that prove value quickly.

I am at my best when navigating the intersection of frontier AI, cybersecurity risk, and public safety data platforms to deliver tangible advantages to federal agencies.

Technical Leadership

Led ~20 NSA technical personnel and aligned operator skillsets to critical red team missions.

AI Prototyping

Built workflows that accelerated report-writing from weeks to minutes using synthetic data.

Cyber Expertise

GCIH and GRTP certified with deep experience in computer network exploitation and forensic analysis.

Selected work

Mission-critical projects.

From AI workflow prototyping to cyber defense training, here is how I've applied technology to solve federal challenges.

Scale AI · 2026

AI Workflow Prototyping for DoD

Challenge
A senior executive at a DoD cyber customer needed to see how AI could enhance report writing, but had not shared any internal data.
Solution
Generated realistic synthetic data to demonstrate AI solutions that could accelerate report-writing workflows from weeks to minutes.
ImpactData AccessStakeholder agreed to share data and move it down classification levels
AFWERX · 2021

RFID Inventory Automation

Challenge
The 51st Combat Communications Squadron needed to automate inventory management to reduce manual overhead.
Solution
Researched RFID tagging technology and developed a business case for adoption, including cost/time savings analysis of previous DoD implementations.
ImpactActionStakeholder moved from research to vendor outreach for acquisition
Bluebonnet Data

Membership Database Revamp

Challenge
Crimson Goes Blue needed to revamp a membership database of 1,000+ members to gain better insights.
Solution
Learnt Airtable platform, researched membership info, and led a team of 3 to complete research for the board of directors.
ImpactInsightsEnabled location clustering and skill-based organizing
Experience

Professional History.

Sept 2026 – Present

Solutions Engineer, Federal

Peregrine Technologies
  • Deliver live Peregrine platform demos, uncovering operational challenges to pinpoint where Peregrine delivers the most value.
  • Conduct access review sessions with customer security and IT teams to securely connect Peregrine to customer data.
Jun 2026 – Jul 2026

SkillBridge Fellow (Technical Program Manager)

Scale AI (Public Sector)
  • Built a prototype for a DoD customer to show how AI solutions could accelerate their report-writing workflows (weeks to minutes).
  • Generated synthetic data to prove the use case without customer data; senior stakeholder agreed to share data for further work.
  • Supported evaluations of frontier AI models for safety and cybersecurity risk for a U.S. intelligence customer.
Aug 2024 – May 2026

Deputy Section Chief, (Technical Program Manager), NSA Red Team

National Security Agency (NSA)
  • Led ~20 DoD personnel in a senior leadership billet (GS-14 equivalent), aligning operator skillsets and certifications to red team missions for DoD customers while overseeing performance, professional development, and mission readiness.
  • Developed and implemented a new standard for assessing technical proficiency of all new NSA Red Team operators; co-authored technical examination that raised NSA enterprise selection standards for all potential NSA cyber operators.
  • Led cross-org coordination in an offense-vs-defense cyber mission; facilitated training defense operators while balancing offense operator needs; converted lessons into reusable defender training, enhancing training for 50+ members annually.
Mar 2023 – Aug 2024

Cyber Network Professional (Ethical Hacker), NSA Red Team

National Security Agency (NSA)
  • Performed computer network exploitation by defining strategies & maintaining situational awareness.
  • Developed and executed operational plans based on target vulnerabilities and mission capabilities.
  • Conducted forensic analysis using software applications to identify anomalous network activity and potential targets.
Oct 2022 – Mar 2023

Technical Advisor

AFWERX, Department of the Air Force
  • Evaluated the technical merit and mission relevance of 3 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) proposals representing $3.67M in potential Air Force R&D investment, including cybersecurity solutions.
Feb 2021 – May 2021

Technical Consultant

AFWERX, Department of the Air Force
  • Researched RFID tagging for the 51st Combat Communications Squadron to automate inventory management; built/briefed business case to senior stakeholder, including previous DoD implementations and potential time/cost savings analysis.
  • Recommendation moved senior stakeholder from research to action, prompting vendor outreach for technology adoption.
Skills & credentials

Technical Expertise.

Core skills

AI solutionssynthetic datacybersecurity riskcomputer network exploitationforensic analysisRFID taggingSpanish

Certifications

SANS GIAC GCIHSANS GIAC GRTPCYBR3440 – Red Team Tools, Tactics, & Techniques (RT3T)Undergraduate Cyber Warfare Training (UCWT)CompTIA Security+

Education & Credentials

  • B.S., cum laude, Computer Science, Rutgers University
  • SANS GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), analyst number 490552024
  • SANS GIAC Red Team Professional (GRTP), analyst number 3972024
  • Graduate, CYBR3440 – Red Team Tools, Tactics, & Techniques (RT3T)2023
  • Graduate, Undergraduate Cyber Warfare Training (UCWT)2022
  • CompTIA Security+, candidate ID COMP001022034351, verification code FV6Z7HPF0CRQQZCZ2022
  • Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) SpanishReading – 3, Listening – 1+, Speaking – 1+
Contact

Let's discuss mission requirements.

Looking for a Solutions Engineer with deep federal and cyber experience? Reach out to discuss how I can help your team.

inlinkedin.com/in/tilak-b
@tilak.bhatnagar@peregrine.io
DCWashington, DC
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