# Gary M. Shiffman

> Gary M. Shiffman is an economist, U.S. Navy Gulf War veteran, founder and CEO of Giant Oak, and co-founder and board member of Consilient. He created the GOST screening platform, wrote The Economics of Violence, and teaches economics at Clemson University. His work connects behavioral science, national security and machine learning to detecting coercion and financial crime.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & Board Member at Consilient; Founder & CEO at Giant Oak; Clinical Professor of Economics at Clemson University
- **Organizations:** Consilient, Giant Oak, Clemson University, Georgetown University (former faculty), U.S. Navy (former), U.S. Department of Defense (former), U.S. Senate (former adviser), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (former chief of staff), L-3 Communications (former executive), The Chertoff Group (former managing director), NextGEN
- **Education:** BA, Psychology, University of Colorado, MA, Security Studies, Georgetown University, MA, Economics, George Mason University, PhD, Economics, George Mason University
- **Known for:** Created Giant Oak Search Technology (GOST), a machine learning screening platform., Co-founded Consilient, launched in October 2020 through Giant Oak and K2 Intelligence Financial Integrity Network., Authored The Economics of Violence (Cambridge University Press, 2020).

## Career timeline

- **1990–1991** — Served as a U.S. Navy surface warfare officer with Gulf War deployments.
- **2002** — Completed an economics doctorate at George Mason University and joined Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service faculty.
- **2004** — Appointed chief of staff at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
- **2006** — Published Economic Instruments of Security Policy: Influencing the Choices of Leaders.
- **2009** — Began incorporating machine learning into DARPA-supported behavioral modeling research.
- **2012** — By late 2012, dedicated his professional time to Giant Oak, according to his 2015 congressional biography.
- **2019** — Testified to the House Financial Services Committee on technology and anti-money laundering.
- **2020** — Published The Economics of Violence and co-launched Consilient with Juan Zarate in October.
- **2021** — Moved from northern Virginia to Greenville, South Carolina.
- **2023** — Consilient announced its next-generation federated learning financial crime solution.
- **2024** — Helped launch NextGEN’s entrepreneur-in-residence program.
- **2025–2026** — Invited by Treasury in November 2025 to return as a national security economist; Clemson reports he worked on an economic security policy framework from January through May 2026.

## Achievements

- Created Giant Oak Search Technology (GOST), a machine learning screening platform.
- Co-founded Consilient, launched in October 2020 through Giant Oak and K2 Intelligence Financial Integrity Network.
- Authored The Economics of Violence (Cambridge University Press, 2020).
- Authored Economic Instruments of Security Policy (Palgrave Macmillan, 2006).
- Led DARPA-supported behavioral science and machine learning research.
- Testified before Congress on financial crime technology in March 2019.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Clemson’s business college reported that Shiffman returned to Washington following a November 2025 Treasury invitation, working from January through May 2026 on an economic security policy framework.
- **2025-01** — NextGEN’s 2024 impact report documented the entrepreneur-in-residence program launched with Shiffman and Heather Hudson.

## Links

- Website: https://www.garyshiffman.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garyshiffman/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/gary-shiffman
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-13