Joshua Tallis, Ph.D.

Joshua Tallis is the CNA scientific analyst to the Chief of Naval Operations, a position he has occupied since the end of 2023. In this role, he authored Navigation Plan 2024, the Navy’s service-wide strategy. Tallis is also coordinator of CNA’s Hybrid Fleet Research Program, providing for the holistic oversight of analyses on naval robotic and autonomous systems.

Tallis previously held several positions as CNA advisor to all levels of command, including the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Operations, Plans, and Strategy (N3/N5) and the commander of US Sixth Fleet and Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO. At Sixth Fleet, he crafted the fleet’s fighting instructions, among other analyses informing strategy and operations across Europe and Africa. In 2018, Tallis deployed to the Arctic and Mediterranean as the CNA analyst to the commander of Carrier Strike Group Eight. His post-deployment analysis of carrier Arctic operations remains a central reference product for High North deployments. When not embedded with Navy staff, Tallis directs studies commissioned by the Department of Defense on topics ranging from the Arctic to illegal fishing and naval innovation.

Tallis holds a PhD in international relations from the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and is the author of The War for Muddy Waters: Pirates, Terrorists, Traffickers, and Maritime Insecurity. He is an adjunct professor at George Washington University, where he teaches graduate courses on maritime security and competition in the global commons. He has won several awards for research and leadership, including CNA’s highest distinction for teamwork in 2021 and its Deployer Award in 2019.