Dr. Dawson Cagle is a program manager at the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), where he leads the SMART ePANTS program, which is designed to develop comfortable, durable and washable active smart textile (AST) systems that can record and store audio, video and geolocation data. Concurrently, he also leads the RESILIENCE program, whose aim is to develop advanced battery technologies to reliably power unmanned aerial vehicles and electronics under extreme temperature conditions. Dr. Cagle came to IARPA in 2019 following 13 years supporting the US Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy (ARPA-e), General Motors, and other commercial clients.
Prior to his work in energy topics, Dr. Cagle managed the chemical weapons analysis laboratory for the United Nations in Iraq, where he served as a weapons inspector for four years. He also supported research in chemical weapons and explosives detection at the Department of Homeland Security.
Dr. Cagle earned his doctorate in inorganic chemistry from Rice University, and a bachelor’s in chemistry and international politics from Roanoke College. A native of East Tennessee, Dr. Cagle now lives in Washington, DC. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, learning new languages, scuba diving, fitness, cooking, travel, music of every kind, reading science and science fiction, and spending time with his family and friends.