Eric Lam is the Collaboration Director for the Midwest Network of the Strategic Partnership Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), based in West Lafayette, Indiana. In this role, he leads a 500+ member network focused on advancing research in four critical technical areas: energetics, hypersonics, microelectronics, and space domain awareness. His efforts span collaboration with organizations across industry, academia, government, and the non-profit sector.

Mr. Lam brings a diverse background in research and development, operations, and technical leadership. He has successfully led multidisciplinary teams delivering capabilities for multi-agency missions, with expertise in electronic devices, materials science, trusted computing, information technology, sensors, artificial intelligence/machine learning, and radiation effects. He has also served as a technical recruiter and team supervisor, applying his multidisciplinary expertise to identify talent, build high-performing teams, and mentor personnel across diverse technical domains.

He played a pivotal role in defining the cyber-physical fused sensing strategy for AFRL, initiating the Cyber-Physical Sensing “Core Competency,” and founding the Cyber-Physical Sensing Working Group in 2021 to foster collaboration across government, academia, and industry. In 2022, he led the development of the Cyber-Physical Sensing Certificate program at the Air Force Institute of Technology. He has also contributed to strategic guidance and investment planning within the intelligence community, with a vision centered on dispersed, proliferated, and networked sensing.

Mr. Lam has served in the U.S. Air Force for 22 years, including a deployment to Iraq and multiple assignments in science and technology roles.