The World of Intelligence From data to decisions: The future of OSINT
Dec 9, 2025
Join Sean Corbett, Chair of the National Security Advisory Board, Phil Smith, CTO at Jane's, and Leendert Van Bochoven, CCO at Jane's, for an engaging discussion on open-source intelligence (OSINT). They dive into the evolution of OSINT and its crucial role in today’s global security landscape. The guests explore the challenges of data overload, the transformative power of AI in processing information, and the indispensable role of human analysts amidst automation. The conversation highlights the urgency of integrating OSINT for faster, more reliable decision-making.
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Intelligence Is A Problem-Specific Puzzle
- Intelligence must answer a defined problem and accept incomplete information like a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces.
- Modern OSINT adds noise because the puzzle now contains millions of pieces from many boxes, complicating synthesis.
Prioritize Time, Trust And Transformational Value
- Prioritize time, trust, and transformational value when building OSINT capabilities for decision advantage.
- Structure data, ensure provenance, and integrate datasets so AI can exploit them reliably at scale.
Volume ≠ Value In Open Data
- Not all publicly available data is equal, so tradecraft — validation and assurance — matters more than sheer volume.
- Analysts must filter for relevance and check assumptions rather than rely on raw scraping.