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AI and Geopolitics

Global AI competition is central to today’s geopolitical debates. Rapid advancement in AI capabilities and adoption present both unprecedented opportunities and risks to international stability and governance. Yet the scholarship needed to navigate this new terrain is dangerously fragmented. Stanford HAI and the Hoover Institution’s Technology Policy Accelerator (TPA) are advancing an ambitious research agenda focused on the most important geopolitical policy challenges impacted by AI.

Amy Zegart
Morris Arnold and Nona Jean Cox Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution | Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies | Associate Director and Senior Fellow, Stanford HAI | Professor, by courtesy, of Political Science, Stanford
Chris Manning headshot
Christopher Manning
Thomas M. Siebel Professor of Machine Learning in the Departments of Linguistics and Computer Science | Associate Director and Senior Fellow, Stanford HAI
yejin choi
Yejin Choi
Dieter Schwarz Foundation HAI Professor | Professor of Computer Science | Senior Fellow, Stanford HAI
Elizabeth Economy
Hargrove Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution
Mykel Kochenderfer
Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Stanford University | Director, Stanford Intelligent Systems Laboratory (SISL) | Associate Director, Stanford HAI
H.R. McMaster
Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution
Jacquelyn Schneider
Hargrove Hoover Fellow, Hoover Institution

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AI and Geopolitics | Stanford HAI

HAI-Hoover TPA Working Group on AI and Geopolitics

About

The Working Group on AI and Geopolitics is a multidisciplinary group of Stanford faculty and scholars that work together to advance research focused on issues at the intersection of AI and geopolitics. Co-sponsored by HAI and the Hoover Institution’s Technology Policy Accelerator (TPA), and co-chaired by political scientist Amy Zegart and computer scientist Chris Manning, the group brings together political scientists and national security experts versed in the geopolitics of AI alongside computer scientists with technical knowledge of the cutting edge of AI development.


By funding novel research and convening timely discussions, the group aims to expand the evidence base and develop orienting principles about the most important geopolitical policy challenges impacted by AI. To date, the group has awarded $300,000 in funding to Stanford research teams examining AI’s role in nuclear proliferation, U.S.-China competition, and political influence.

Steering Committee

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Update: DeepSeek AI and the Great Talent Competition

In April 2025, we analyzed the 223 researchers behind DeepSeek's first five papers and found that the company's talent ran deeper than the prevailing story allowed.
White Paper

The 2026 US Talent Report: Benchmarking America’s STEM Pipeline Amid the Great Talent Competition

Emerson Johnston
Amy Zegart
Emerson Johnston
Workforce, LaborGeopolitics and International SecurityGlobal PerspectivesQuick ReadSep 28

This report assesses America's ability to develop, attract, and retain STEM talent and warns that its advantages over China are narrowing rapidly.

The Commercial Landscape of AI Sovereignty Offerings
Caroline Meinhardt, Juan N. Pava, Caroline Yee, James Landay
Deep DiveJul 15
Issue Brief

This brief surveys the commercial AI sovereignty market and argues that policymakers should focus on calibrating interdependence rather than pursuing full self-sufficiency.

Beyond DeepSeek: China's Diverse Open-Weight AI Ecosystem and Its Policy Implications
Caroline Meinhardt, Sabina Nong, Graham Webster, Tatsunori Hashimoto, Christopher Manning
Deep DiveDec 16
Issue Brief

Almost one year after the “DeepSeek moment,” this brief analyzes China’s diverse open-model ecosystem and examines the policy implications of their widespread global diffusion.

Yejin Choi’s Briefing to the United Nations Security Council
Yejin Choi
Quick ReadSep 24
Testimony

In this address, presented to the United Nations Security Council meeting on "Maintenance of International Peace and Security," Yejin Choi calls on the global scientific and policy communities to expand the AI frontier for all by pursuing intelligence that is not only powerful, but also accessible, robust, and efficient. She stresses the need to rethink our dependence on massive-scale data and computing resources from the outset, and design methods that do more with less — by building AI that is smaller and serves all communities.

Policy Implications of DeepSeek AI’s Talent Base
Amy Zegart, Emerson Johnston
Quick ReadMay 06
Policy Brief

This brief presents an analysis of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s talent base and calls for U.S. policymakers to reinvest in competing to attract and retain global AI talent.

news

New Stanford Grants Tackle AI's Impact on Global Security and Geopolitics

Nikki Goth Itoi
DemocracyInternational Affairs, International Security, International DevelopmentRegulation, Policy, GovernanceAug 10

Stanford HAI and the Hoover Institution’s Technology Policy Accelerator back projects examining AI's role in detecting nuclear proliferation, U.S.-China competition, and political influence.

news
illustration showing world and digital lines and binary code

AI Sovereignty’s Definitional Dilemma

Juan N. Pava, Caroline Meinhardt, Elena Cryst, James Landay
Global PerspectivesGovernment, Public AdministrationRegulation, Policy, GovernanceFeb 17

Governments worldwide are racing to control their AI futures, but unclear definitions hinder real policy progress.