Robert Newcomb

Robert is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at age 19 and a proud third-generation U.S. Navy veteran. His grandfather served in the Korean War and his father served in the Vietnam War. Robert enlisted in the Navy in 1999, and a few months after his assignment to his first duty station, 9/11 occurred. He has traveled to many countries around the world and has come to understand the diversity of different cultures, religions, and ideologies.

Robert believes there are moments in a person’s life that define their character — when a person puts their hand up to the square and commits to a purpose, it defines who they are. Most significantly, he remembers the oath he took to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”

Biography

Before joining the U.S. Navy, Robert spent his high school years in California, where he also worked for a year on a drilling rig at Gary Drilling in Bakersfield. After his military service he moved to Provo, Utah and graduated from Utah Valley University (UVU). During his college years he spent his summers as a licensed contractor building pole barns, working as a heavy equipment operator, and taking on various construction jobs.

After spending some time at Utah State University (USU), Robert married his wife Tamara Rollins, who graduated from Brigham Young University (BYU). After being married at the Timpanogos Temple in American Fork, Utah, Robert and Tamara moved to Texas where Tamara started a civilian fellowship program with the U.S. Army. While Tamara finished her fellowship, Robert completed his engineering degree at the University of Iowa and briefly worked for the U.S. Army at Rock Island, Illinois. After both of them graduated, they moved to California to work with the U.S. Navy.

As an engineer, Robert went through the Engineering Science Development Program (ESDP) with the U.S. Navy, where he was trained in Department of Defense weapon systems, irregular and asymmetric warfare, weapon testing, and the application of exotic weapon systems to complex platforms. On many occasions he collaborated with academia, government, and industry to integrate critical technologies for the warfighter.

Robert was fortunate to integrate asymmetric and irregular technologies, as well as AI, with the Navy. He implemented critically advanced technologies with Naval Special Warfare (SEALs), maintained a Top Secret clearance, and on several occasions visited the Pentagon and many other military bases across the world. In that capacity he has spent many years researching and developing technologies alongside leaders in industry.