A native of Paterson, NJ, Lt. Cmdr. Jason Mariscal earned an appointment to the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Naval Architecture in 2011. Following graduation, he completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training and SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) in 2012, officially beginning his career in Naval Special Warfare. LCDR Mariscal’s operational experience began with assignments to SEAL Team FIVE, Special Boat Team TWELVE, and SEAL Team THREE. Throughout his career, he deployed across multiple Combatant Commands (COCOMs), including CENTCOM, PACOM, EUCOM, and AFRICOM, where he executed and led special operations missions supporting national security objectives.
Ashore, Mariscal served as the Training and Readiness Deputy Director at Naval Special Warfare Group ONE, where he played a pivotal role in developing the Fleet Integration Cell for West Coast SEAL Teams and fostering enhanced collaboration with NIWC-Pacific, the Pacific Fleet, and the Third Fleet. He later served at Naval Special Warfare Command (WARCOM) as the N85 Capability Integration Deputy Director, where he spearheaded efforts to modernize NSW’s capability development and integration processes. In addition to his operational and staff roles, Mariscal has been actively involved in mentorship and leadership development as a facilitator and leader for the Naval Junior Officer Counsel (NJOC) at the NPS. In this capacity, he has worked to bridge the gap between junior officers and senior leadership, fostering professional development, innovation, and cross community collaboration among emerging naval leaders.
Mariscal is a Naval Postgraduate School student pursuing a master’s in Program Management and Applied Design for Innovation from the Defense Analysis Department. His focus is on mission engineering and improving the capability development process for Naval Special Warfare. His awards include the NATO Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.
The partnerships with DIU and JIFX were instrumental in translating academic research into real-world applications. DIU connected us with a vast network of technology experts and acquisition professionals, helping us understand the current landscape of digital tools and how the industry tackles similar challenges. Their support gave us insight into a GCC-sponsored solicitation process, which informed our understanding of high-level user needs and shaped early design considerations for the DOTmLPF-P tool.
JIFX provided a legal and ethical framework for directly engaging with the industry. As military researchers, this was essential—it gave us a platform to explore AI/ML capabilities, interface design, and prototyping without crossing boundaries. These partnerships didn’t just offer theoretical value; they gave us access to stakeholders, testing scenarios, and fundamental points of contact for continued development.
DIU and JIFX laid the groundwork for future experimentation by helping us define the tool’s value proposition and identify next-step collaborators.
Time was our biggest challenge. We pivoted to our current research focus mid-program, giving us only about six months to conduct interviews, analyze findings, and build a stakeholder workshop. Because the project relied heavily on user engagement, coordinating schedules and feedback became a constraint.
NPS support helped us persevere. Funding from the NPS Foundation and NSW’s Bucklew Strategic Studies Group enabled the workshop that clarified the tool’s direction. Our faculty mentors helped us bridge our operational experience with systems thinking and innovation research.
As warfighters, we’ve seen how long it can take for a capability gap to be addressed—often far too long. That lag creates real vulnerabilities. This research was motivated by a simple but essential question: how can we move faster without sacrificing rigor? Lessons from Ukraine and other contemporary conflicts reinforced the urgency. Our operational lens made it clear that faster, more innovative decision support tools are not just helpful—they’re essential.
This project has deepened my commitment to improving NSW’s capability development. I plan to continue this work through the NSW acquisitions career path, using what I’ve learned here—operationally, academically, and organizationally—to drive lasting change. I want to help ensure NSW innovation is not episodic, but part of a repeatable, user-informed process.
The following steps are already underway. We’ve engaged with stakeholders across NSW, SOCOM, DIU, and other innovation communities interested in testing and applying our insights. We’ll formally deliver our report to these stakeholders and continue fostering connections between those working on similar problems—for example, bridging DIU’s staff augmentation tools with SOCOM’s capability prioritization efforts.
We’re also exploring prototyping opportunities, including submitting the tool challenge to NPS’ Computer Science Hackathon. And critically, we’ve built relationships with the WARCOM N81 team, who are ideally placed to lead user-driven testing. Our job is to ensure this handoff is successful, equipping them with the knowledge and partnerships to continue development beyond our time at NPS.
AI tools have enormous potential to improve efficiency and decision-making, particularly at the staff level. Complex workflows, fragmented coordination, and unstructured data often overwhelm staff. AI tools can help automate analysis, streamline information sharing, and accelerate the ability to make informed decisions. That, in turn, enables faster capability delivery and better alignment across echelons.
Adoption is the challenge. Many teams still don’t fully understand what AI can and can’t do—or how to integrate it without introducing risk. That’s where NPS can make a difference. NPS is already advancing the conversation through AI-focused coursework and conferences, but more must be done.
NPS should expand hands-on exposure to AI tools by partnering with industry for live demonstrations, enabling students to prototype solutions in JIFX events, and embedding real-world AI problems into capstones. It should also deepen collaboration with DIU, which leads AI integration across the DoD. Giving students visibility into ongoing DIU projects—especially those focused on decision support—would accelerate learning and connect classroom theory to operational impact.
This project is a modest but meaningful step toward modernizing NSW’s capability development. While not a finished solution, it identified a clear need for a digital DOTmLPF-P tool and helped shape early thinking about what such a tool should do. The real contribution lies in how the project reframes the opportunity: better decisions, faster, grounded in real data and user needs.
This tool could reduce friction and staffing delays, align investments with operational priorities, and support more agile planning cycles if developed further. That said, real impact will require ownership from WARCOM and other acquisition leaders, plus a cultural willingness to embrace AI, experiment safely, and move beyond manual, outdated workflows.
We’ve built early momentum and stakeholder buy-in. Now it’s up to the community to turn that into sustained progress. With continued development, this tool could help NSW become faster, wiser, and more adaptive, giving decision-makers a real advantage in an increasingly complex environment.
