Special Session 19

SPECIAL SESSION #19

Alezandra Zabala-Lopez

Escuela Superior de Guerra “General Rafael Reyes Prieto”

• Alexandra.zabala@esdeg.edu.co

Mario Linares-Vásquez

Universidad de los Andes

• m.linaresv@uniandes.edu.co

While Latin America has traditionally played a limited role in global defense tech development, the region is now making efforts to adopt emerging technologies to meet growing defense and security needs. These initiatives often face structural challenges, including limited resources and the absence of mature defense- industrial ecosystems.

This special session aims to highlight early-stage research, innovation strategies, and civil-military collaboration models that are helping to bridge this gap. It provides a platform to showcase how Latin American institutions are beginning to approach technological modernization, explore dual-use solutions, and engage in global conversations around responsible and context-aware defense innovation.

Most defense innovation efforts have emerged in the Global North. At the same time, Latin America continues to face the challenge of building applied research and technological capabilities tailored to its strategic realities. With limited resources and underrepresented in global forums, the region is now beginning to engage in areas like AI, space systems, and cyber defense. This Special Session at TechDefense 2025 offers a space to showcase these emerging efforts, promote international collaboration, and bring visibility to context-driven innovation in Latin America, contributing valuable perspectives to the global defense tech landscape. We invite original research papers, case studies, and field-based experiences related to the application of emerging technologies in Latin American defense and security contexts.

Relevant technologies include:

• Big data and Analytics;
• Artificial intelligence;
• Robotics and Autonomous Systems;
• Space;
• Hypersonics;
• Energy and Propulsion;
• Electronics and Electromagnetics;
• Quantum;
• Bio and Human Enhancement Technologies;
• Materials and Advanced Manufacturing;
• New Realities (Virtual, Augmented, Mixed) and Metaverse;
• IoT;
• Blockchain.

My Alexandra Zabala López, Ph.D., is an officer of the Colombian Aerospace Force and currently serves as a researcher and advisor on science, technology, and innovation for the defense and security sector in Colombia. She holds a Ph.D. in Technological Innovation Management from Universidad de los Andes and a degree in Informatics Engineering from the Colombian Aerospace Force Academy. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Security and National Defense and is a student of the 2025 Command and General Staff Course at the Colombian War College (Escuela Superior de Guerra “General Rafael Reyes Prieto”).
She has held key positions, including Coordinator of the Science, Technology, and Innovation Group at the Ministry of National Defense, Director of Capability Potential, and Deputy Director of Research and Technological Development in Cyber Defense. Her work focuses on the integration of artificial intelligence into operational military environments, with emphasis on cyber defense, aerospace data processing, and open innovation.
During her doctoral studies, she was a member of the Software Design Lab at Universidad de los Andes and completed a research internship at the SERENE Lab at Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL, USA), where she developed ATHENEA AI, a natural language processing model tailored to military intelligence. She has also led the development of AI-based environmental monitoring systems for the Colombian Amazon and actively collaborates with national universities and military institutions in the design and prototyping of AI-enabled defense capabilities.

Mario Linares-Vásquez, systems and Computing Engineer, with a Master's in Systems and Computing Engineering from the Universidad Nacional. Ph.D. in Computer Science from William & Mary University. Associate Professor at the School of Engineering and Director of The Software Design Lab at Universidad de los Andes. Member of the Technological Modernization Committee of the Advisory Council for the National Statistical System. Advisor to the Intelligence and Education Commands of the Colombian Aerospace Force. Second Lieutenant in the Reserve Officer Professional Corps of the Colombian Aerospace Force. With over 20 years of experience in the software industry and more than 15 years as a university professor.
Senior IEEE researcher internationally recognized for his contributions in the area of software evolution and maintenance. Recognized by the research.org portal as a “Top-3 Computer Science Researcher” in Colombia since 2021 and as Colombia’s “Top-1 Science Rising Star” since 2023. He has received the ACM Distinguished Paper Award on four occasions and is a three-time winner of the Google Latin America Research Award (LARA). His research interests include Automated Software Engineering, the development of socially impactful applications, the use of machine learning in software development processes, responsible AI usage, and universal design. Honored by the Colombian Aerospace Force with the “Distinguished Services to Air Intelligence” medal and the “Air Cybersecurity and Cyberdefense” insignia.