Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick was the inaugural director of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), established by the Department of Defense in 2022 to investigate UAP reports. A career intelligence officer and physicist, Kirkpatrick led AARO through its first year of operations before resigning in December 2023. His tenure was controversial, with whistleblowers and members of Congress criticizing AARO's conclusions as dismissive and its investigations as inadequate.