Category: Sector: Defense

Hard Questions: Defense

  • Call for Book Chapters: OUR AI PROBLEMS

    Call for Book Chapters: OUR AI PROBLEMS

    Call for Book Chapters: Our AI Problems (Edited Volume)

    We believe that there are no easy answers when it comes to artificial intelligence and society. Across jurisdictions and decision-making bodies, those who develop or enforce regulations are confronted with difficult questions. These challenges arise for many reasons: the issues are often embedded in complex sociotechnical systems, lack straightforward solutions, or involve tensions between competing values and needs.

    The editors hold that AI can be of great service for humanity. At the same time, current regulatory frameworks lag far behind what is needed to ensure just, safe, and equitable access and outcomes. 

    Policymakers and subject-matter specialists are increasingly converging on a shared set of especially challenging issues.  Society is learning to join in the conversations. Accordingly, the proposed volume is envisioned as addressing the following areas: Economics and Power; Democracy and Trust; Risks Large and Small; Building Bridges and Inclusion; Media and Art; Environment and Health; Justice, Security, and Defense.

    If you are interested in contributing, we would be delighted to hear from you. If you know colleagues or collaborators who might wish to participate, please feel free to share this call with them as well.

    Deadline for chapter abstracts (250–300 words): 15 January 2026
    Deadline for chapter draft submission (8000–10,000 words; US English; APA style): 31 March 2026
    Deadline for final revisions: 15 May 2026

    Edited by Tammy Mackenzie, Ashley Elizabeth Muller, and Branislav Radeljić

    For more info about the editors, please see: Fellows
    Submissions and questions: Contact Branislav Radeljić, Ph.D., Director of Research.

  • Rogers Cybersecure Cataylst Fellow 2025-2026

    Rogers Cybersecure Cataylst Fellow 2025-2026

    We are very proud  to announce Aula Fellow Jake Okechukwu Effoduh has been named a Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst Fellow for 2025-2026.

    Read more: “Fighting for justice beyond borders: Jake Okechukwu Effoduh’s journey from grassroots advocacy to cyber law.“

  • Generative AI and the Future of News: Examining AI’s Agency, Power, and Authority

    Generative AI and the Future of News: Examining AI’s Agency, Power, and Authority

    This special issue interrogates how artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI (GenAI), is reshaping journalism at a moment of profound uncertainty for the profession. The rapid rise of GenAI technologies, particularly following the release of tools like ChatGPT, has intensified longstanding tensions between economic precarity, technological innovation, and journalistic values. Across diverse contexts in the Global North and South, articles examine how AI is simultaneously heralded as a source of efficiency, personalization, and newsroom survival, while also feared as a destabilizing force that threatens jobs, erodes professional norms, and concentrates power in the hands of technology corporations.

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  • World AI: Women in AI

    World AI: Women in AI

    The Aula Fellowship were present, to discuss social and environmental concerns to do with the marketing of AI as a panacea. The event brings together technology companies, civil society, and decision-makers. We were able to connect with other non-profits and universities in this sector, and to build collaborations with several attendees and presenters.

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  • Tech Tool: TechAIRS Confidential AI Reporting System Application

    Tech Tool: TechAIRS Confidential AI Reporting System Application

    A curated OODA triage system for AI Incident Reporting. This tool is available for collaborations. Please contact our Technical Director, François Pelletier, for more information.

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  • Autonomous weapons: Palantir, Airbus engineers seek to calm ‘killer robot’ fears

    Autonomous weapons: Palantir, Airbus engineers seek to calm ‘killer robot’ fears

    Our Fellow Tammy Mackenzie was recently interviewed by FRANCE 24’s Tech24 segment to share her thoughts on AI in Autonomous Weapons Systems (AWS).

    The segment looks into the ethical implications of deploying AI in military operations and discusses the critical need for regulatory frameworks that ensure these technologies are used responsibly. As the conversation around AI evolves, we must engage with these topics. Properly balancing military pragmatism and AI ethics is among the most significant global challenges today.

    How do you think we can achieve a balance between innovation and responsibility?

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  • The militarization of digital surveillance in post-coup Zimbabwe:‘Just don’t tell them what we do’

    The militarization of digital surveillance in post-coup Zimbabwe:‘Just don’t tell them what we do’

    While a large body of research has documented and theorized digital surveillance practices in various political contexts, little has been done to investigate the growing trend of military-driven digital surveillance practices in semi-authoritarian regimes. In this article, I use the case of the surveillance practices of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces to argue that scholarship needs to (re)evaluate this emerging trend. The article has three aims: first, it explores military-driven surveillance capabilities, the circulation of such capabilities and the surveillance tactics emerging in the semi-authoritarian context of Zimbabwe. Second, it examines the interface of factionalism and politics within the Zimbabwe Defence Forces and how this influences quotidian military-driven digital surveillance practices.

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  • Powers, Interests and Actors 1: The Influence of China in Africa’s Digital Surveillance Practices

    Powers, Interests and Actors 1: The Influence of China in Africa’s Digital Surveillance Practices

    This chapter examines the influence of China in the growth of Africa’s digital surveillance 1 capabilities and practices. The growth of Chinese investments through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in the global south is well documented. Yet, China’s digital infrastructure investments in Africa still present a research lacuna that needs to be filled. Equally under-researched is how it influences African governments’ clampdown on citizens. Utilising the international political economy approach, we analyse the intersection of power, actors and interests in Africa’s surveillance practices focusing on Zambia and Zimbabwe. We focus on Zimbabwe and Zambia because their ties with China are among the most enduring of all African countries.

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