Biography
Don Kilburg, Ph.D. is the Founder and CEO of Mind Leap Institute, helping individuals and organizations get AI adoption right — not just deploying tools, but building the mindsets and leadership capacity that make those tools actually perform. He is the author of AI Use Cases for Diplomats (Routledge, 2025) and Mind Leap: How to Think, Feel, and Flourish in the Age of AI (Routledge, forthcoming 2026). During his 21 years as a U.S. diplomat, he pioneered enterprise technology adoption across the diplomatic corps, developing AI use frameworks now embedded in government training programs and building tools that measurably expanded operational capacity. His work earned multiple State Department innovation awards. A U.S. Army veteran and experimental psychologist, Kilburg has briefed presidents, secretaries of state, and ambassadors. He directed strategic communications at embassies across Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Kilburg is based in Madrid and works with clients internationally.