John-Francis Mergen

Mr. John-Francis Mergen joined DARPA as a program manager in January 2020 to develop, execute, and transition programs in cybersecurity.

Mergen joined DARPA from Raytheon BBN Technologies, where he was chief scientist and a Senior Raytheon Fellow. His responsibilities included maintaining excellence in cybersecurity technology development and providing technical leadership. Prior to his role at Raytheon BBN Technologies, Mergen was the Verizon Federal Networks CTO, responsible for research in the areas of telecommunications and information management. Earlier in his career, Mergen was with Genuity, Alex. Brown & Sons, General Electric, Electronic Data Systems, and SAIC.

Mergen holds a Master of Science in management, with a concentration in information systems, from Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management. He holds a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering, with a double major in electrical engineering and operations research from Yale University, where he graduated cum laude and with distinction in the major. He is a private pilot and holds an amateur radio operator advanced class license.