Peterson Conway VIII, a defense tech recruiter known for his cowboy hat and unorthodox methods, has become a behind-the-scenes power broker in Silicon Valley's defense tech industry. With a reputation for luring top talent to buzzy startups like Palantir and Mach Industries, Conway's influence extends far beyond his signature black Suburban and private plane.

Conway's rise to prominence began over a decade ago, when he started recruiting for Palantir, a defense company founded by Peter Thiel. With no official title, Conway was simply "just Peterson," building out the company's international teams and landing high-profile hires like Michael Leiter, the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center. His methods were unorthodox, involving handwritten letters with wax seals and a keen eye for candidates with an "internal compass and conviction."

Today, Conway is the head of talent at venture firm A* Capital, where he's recruited for companies like Mach Industries, a weapons firm founded by 19-year-old Ethan Thornton. Conway's ability to connect with candidates on a human level, rather than just looking at resumes and credentials, has earned him a reputation as a master recruiter. As Fuse founder JC Btaiche put it, "Peterson can deliver that story" of defending America, convincing top talent to join the mission-driven startups he represents.

But Conway's success hasn't come without controversy. He was fired by Fuse after sharing a story about prostitutes attending a recruiting event, which he later admitted was inappropriate. Despite this, Conway continued to pitch candidates to Btaiche and eventually won back his role, recruiting over seven people to the company, including its chief strategy officer, Laura Thomas, a former CIA officer.

Conway's personal life is as colorful as his professional reputation. The son of a draft dodger who sold LSD in Tokyo, Conway grew up in a family of adventurers and rebels. He briefly attended Dartmouth to study economics before becoming a recruiter, and has since built a reputation as a storyteller and a risk-taker. His private plane, which he uses to take candidates on flights over the San Francisco Bay, has become a symbol of his unconventional approach to recruitment.

Despite his liabilities, Conway remains a key player in the defense tech industry, with a network of connections that extends from PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel to entrepreneur and A* partner Kevin Hartz. As the industry continues to grow, with defense tech funding reaching almost $3 billion last year, Conway is poised to play an even larger role in shaping the next generation of startups and innovators.

In the end, Conway's story is one of contradictions – a genius recruiter with a talent for storytelling, who is also prone to exaggeration and controversy. As Gregory Dorman, a recent Princeton graduate who worked with Conway, put it, "he's a super unconventional recruiter." Yet, he's also "better than any other recruiter." Love him or hate him, Peterson Conway VIII is an undeniable force in the defense tech industry, and his influence will be felt for years to come.