Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Joins 6K Advisory Board

6K, a developer of microwave plasma technology for the production of advanced materials, has added Dr. Joe Felter, a former senior Department of Defense (DOD) official under then Secretary of Defense James Mattis, to its advisory board. Dr. Felter will help guide 6K’s strategy in working with the DOD and other U.S. federal agencies. He joins other industry leaders on the board, including Magnus Rene, former Arcam CEO, and Robert Galyen, former CATL CTO.

The company says its technology addresses scarcity of strategic materials and reduces U.S. dependence on foreign imports. It also enables domestic production of advanced materials typically produced overseas due to the technology’s dramatic reduction in production costs and ability to produce in an environmentally sustainable way.

“We are honored to have Dr. Felter join the 6K team as part of our advisory board,” says Dr. Aaron Bent, 6K CEO. “Dr. Felter’s specialty with issues of national security strategy and deep relationships in Washington are invaluable not only to guide 6K but to maximize deployment in a way that enhances the mission of the United States.”

Dr. Felter is the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia. He is currently a William J. Perry Fellow at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, and research fellow at the Hoover Institution.

“Strategic materials are becoming increasingly pivotal to the national interests of the United States, and 6K continues to prove its unique capability to address these needs, with examples like its recent Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) contract to recover and upcycle materials for defense applications from domestic sources of supply,” Felter says. “The recent pandemic has shown the need to strengthen control of supply chains and create domestic sourcing. 6K can do this across numerous important areas including batteries for energy independence and critical alloys for aircraft and weapons platforms.”