Carnegie Endowment for International Peace — AI Program
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace AI Program
Carnegie's AI program researches how AI reshapes global governance, geopolitics, and democratic institutions. Operating through offices in Washington, Beijing, Brussels, Beirut, and New Delhi, Carnegie brings a uniquely global perspective to AI governance, covering AI in democracies and autocracies, AI in warfare, and international AI cooperation frameworks.
Quick Assessment
| Dimension | Assessment | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Global Perspective | Very High | Offices in Washington, Beijing, Brussels, Beirut, New Delhi, Singapore |
| Geopolitical Analysis | Very High | Deep expertise in how AI intersects with great power competition |
| Institutional Prestige | Very High | Carnegie is one of the world's premier international affairs think tanks |
| Democracy Focus | High | Significant research on AI's effects on democratic institutions globally |
| China Expertise | High | Beijing office provides direct insight into Chinese AI governance |
| Technical Depth | Moderate | Stronger on geopolitical and governance dimensions than technical AI |
Organization Details
| Attribute | Details |
|---|---|
| Parent Organization | Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (founded 1910) |
| Program | Technology and International Affairs |
| Location | Washington, D.C. (global offices: Beijing, Brussels, Beirut, New Delhi, Singapore) |
| Structure | Program within nonprofit international affairs think tank |
| Co-Directors | Jon Bateman, Arthur Nelson |
| Carnegie President | Mariano-Florentino Cuellar (former California Supreme Court justice) |
| Staff | ≈15-20 directly affiliated with the technology program |
| Website | carnegieendowment.org/programs/technology-and-international-affairs |
| Focus Areas | AI and geopolitics, AI governance across regime types, digital authoritarianism, international AI cooperation |
Overview
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, founded in 1910 by Andrew Carnegie, is one of the world's oldest and most respected international affairs think tanks. Its Technology and International Affairs Program applies Carnegie's deep expertise in geopolitics, international governance, and democratic resilience to the challenges posed by artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
Carnegie's AI program is uniquely positioned in the AI governance landscape due to its global network of offices and researchers. With centers in Beijing, Brussels, Beirut, New Delhi, and Singapore in addition to its Washington headquarters, Carnegie can analyze AI governance from genuinely global perspectives — including from inside countries that many Western AI policy organizations can only study from the outside.
Key Research Areas
AI and Geopolitics: Carnegie produces influential analysis on how AI competition between the United States and China shapes international relations, including research on export controls, talent flows, and the potential for AI-driven shifts in the global balance of power.
AI Governance Across Regime Types: A distinctive Carnegie contribution is its comparative research on how democracies and autocracies approach AI governance differently. This includes studying China's AI governance framework, surveillance state dynamics, and the export of AI-enabled authoritarianism.
Digital Authoritarianism: Carnegie has been a leading voice on the spread of AI-enabled surveillance and social control tools from authoritarian regimes to other countries, documenting how facial recognition, social credit systems, and predictive policing technologies are exported and adapted.
International AI Cooperation: Research on the prospects and frameworks for international AI governance cooperation, including arms control-inspired approaches to regulating military AI, multilateral AI safety agreements, and the role of international institutions.
AI and Democratic Resilience: Analysis of how AI affects democratic processes including elections, media ecosystems, public deliberation, and government transparency, with recommendations for strengthening democratic institutions in the age of AI.
Global Network Advantage
Carnegie's global office network provides research advantages that few other AI policy organizations can match:
- Beijing office: Direct access to Chinese AI researchers, policymakers, and industry, enabling informed analysis of China's AI ecosystem rather than relying on external observation
- Brussels office: Close engagement with EU institutions during AI Act development and implementation
- New Delhi office: Perspective on India's rapidly growing AI sector and governance approach
- Singapore office: Coverage of Southeast Asian AI policy developments
Key Dynamics
Geopolitical lens: Carnegie's primary contribution to AI governance is through its geopolitical perspective, analyzing how AI intersects with great power competition, alliance management, and international order. This complements the more technically-focused work of CSET and the domestically-focused advocacy of organizations like AI Policy Institute.
China expertise: Carnegie's Beijing office gives it unusual credibility and depth on US-China AI dynamics, a topic that organizations like RAND and CSIS also cover but often with less direct access to Chinese perspectives.
Long institutional horizon: Founded over a century ago, Carnegie brings a historical perspective to AI governance that emphasizes how previous waves of transformative technology were managed (or mismanaged) through international cooperation and institutional design.