Good Intelligence vs Noise and the Skills AI Can't Replace - Interview with Josh D. MacLellan (S3E1)

Staff Threat Intelligence Advisor Josh Darby MacLellan at Feedly kicks off season three by unpacking his path into CTI, what separates intelligence that gets used from intelligence that gets ignored, and why core skills like stakeholder communication may outlast technical specialties as AI reshapes the field. Josh started his career with childhood dreams of becoming a criminal lawyer, shifted through academic study of international relations and security, and unfolded into more than a decade of private-sector threat intelligence work across Canada, the US, and multiple specialties within CTI. Josh is blunt about where the field falls short. Good intelligence is connected to a decision and a decision-maker, versus reports written for other analysts that never get read. Josh and Freddy discuss team structure, and why CTI teams that skew small and heavily technical tend to miss the core skills of stakeholder conversation that keep a function relevant when budgets tighten. Josh argues communication is a trainable skill, the same way he trained himself to become a clearer public speaker despite two speech impediments and years of mumbling through bombed public talks.As for AI, Josh draws a clear line between what he'll delegate and what he won't. He uses LLMs for collection support, editing, and even as a stand-in second analyst to catch his own blind spots, but he won't hand over the analysis stage. Trusting an unreviewed AI process, he argues, is a bit like citing a source you've never actually read. Freddy pushes back with his own testing of LLMs on structured analytic techniques, and the two get into what's actually lost when a black box quietly decides what information matters.RESOURCES NATO Intelligence Cycle - https://ac.nato.int/resources/uploads/2284/picture2-intel-8Wgsa2.png Freddy's Intelligence Architecture Mind Map - https://github.com/Errum/IntelArchitectureMap/files/14615837/240315.-.Intelligence.Architecture.v0.7.42.pdfGert Jan's Measuring value of CTI - https://github.com/gertjanbruggink/metrics Feedly - https://feedly.com/ Intel471's CU-GIRH - https://github.com/intel471/CU-GIR Sherman Chu's Tyranny of Current Intelligence - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IETRHdMejaw Sherman's slides - https://www.sans.org/presentations/were-in-now-now-the-tyranny-of-current-intelligence-and-how-to-manage-itIntel Tradecraft Courses and Trainings - https://inteltradecraft.com/sat-certifications IRM Workshop - https://www.intel471.com/lp/building-an-intel-workshop SANS FOR578 CTI - https://www.sans.org/cyber-security-courses/cyber-threat-intelligence Josh Darby's SANS presentation "Can We Forecast Our Own Fate" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9TkeUbD1Mk Josh's slide deck - https://www.sans.org/presentations/can-we-forecast-our-own-fate-mapping-the-future-of-the-cti-industry-with-satsFeedly CTI Essentials - https://feedly.com/ti-essentialsWebinar: What CTI practitioners recommend you focus on in 2026 - https://feedly.com/ti-essentials/posts/what-cti-practitioners-recommend-you-focus-on-in-2026Freddy and Josh Think smarter, not harder: Making SATs work in CTI - https://feedly.com/ti-essentials/posts/think-smarter-not-harder-making-sats-work-in-ctiFeedly AI - https://feedly.com/ai MLitt in Terrorism Studies - https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/subjects/international-relations/terrorism-mlitt/CHAPTERS0:00 Intro and Welcome1:01 Josh's Path Into CTI4:04 CTI Maturity Across Countries8:08 Pivot to Protective Intelligence12:12 Defining Intelligence and CTI13:13 Good vs Bad Intelligence16:16 The Intelligence Cycle23:23 Engaging Stakeholders Directly26:26 Core Skills and Job Security33:33 Training and Certifications40:40 Building Well-Rounded Teams43:43 Mentoring and Giving Back49:49 AI's Role in the Cycle58:58 How Josh Uses AI1:05:05 People Who Shaped His Career