Reports

CSET produces evidence-driven analysis in a variety of forms, from informative graphics and translations to expert testimony and published reports. Our key areas of inquiry are the foundations of artificial intelligence — such as talent, data and computational power — as well as how AI can be used in cybersecurity and other national security settings. We also do research on the policy tools that can be used to shape AI’s development and use, and on biotechnology.

Report

CSET’s 2025 Annual Report

Center for Security and Emerging Technology
| March 31, 2026

Each year, CSET’s annual report highlights our work and impact across technology and security issues. It shows how our research, convening, and engagement contribute to important policy conversations on emerging technologies.

In 2025, CSET advanced its mission to inform high-stakes decisions through rigorous, evidence-based analysis of the security implications of emerging technologies. Our independent research examines issues at the intersection of technology and security.

You can view a web version of our annual report or download it below.

Filter publications

As artificial intelligence introduces new risks, some potentially catastrophic or even existential, there is little data or detailed theory to assess them. Policymakers often resort to expert best guesses for the probability of doom but probability is not always the most appropriate tool, especially for the types of uncertainties in AI risk. This report details a brief introduction to Belief and Plausibility, which provides an alternative approach that is mathematically rigorous, uses familiar vocabulary, and only requires policymakers to ask two simple questions.

Reports

Securing the Future of Trusted Semiconductor Supply Chains

Sam Bresnick and Hanna Dohmen
| April 2026

Many countries view artificial intelligence (AI) as critical to economic competitiveness and national security. As a result, sovereign AI—the idea that national governments should develop, control, and govern AI in order to boost economic growth, guarantee security, and ensure strategic autonomy—has become a key strategic consideration in the global AI buildout.

Reports

Full-Spectrum Propaganda in the Social Media Era

Josh A. Goldstein and Renée DiResta
| April 22, 2026

In a new Security Studies article, Renee DiResta and Josh A. Goldstein lay out how state-backed propagandists run “full-spectrum” propaganda campaigns, relying on overt and covert tools across broadcast and social media.

Organizations face growing pressure to adopt artificial intelligence, but often lack practical guidance on how to do so effectively. This report bridges the gap between high-level principles and real-world implementation, offering actionable steps across the AI adoption life cycle. Drawing on over 1,200 resources, this reference guide provides practitioners with the knowledge required to operationalize AI safety, security, and governance practices within their organizations.

The competition between the United States and China regarding artificial intelligence (AI) is entering a new phase and is increasingly focused on influencing the global AI ecosystem. Although national security is an important consideration in the U.S.-China AI rivalry, it represents only one dimension of a broader and nuanced competition.

Reports

China’s Military AI Wish List

Emelia Probasco, Sam Bresnick, and Cole McFaul
| February 2026

This report examines thousands of Chinese-language open-source requests for proposal (RFPs) published by the People’s Liberation Army between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2024. The RFPs the authors reviewed offer insights into the PLA’s priorities and ambitions for AI-enabled military technologies associated with C5ISRT: command, control, communications, computers, cyber, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting.

Reports

Physical AI

John VerWey
| February 2026

This paper examines the convergence of artificial intelligence and robotics, analyzing the emerging field of Physical AI. It provides a detailed overview of the supply chain challenges, competitive dynamics, and policy considerations that define this potentially transformative emerging technology.

Reports

When AI Builds AI

Helen Toner, Kendrea Beers, Steve Newman, Saif M. Khan, Colin Shea-Blymyer, Evelyn Yee, Ashwin Acharya, Kathleen Fisher, Keller Scholl, Peter Wildeford, Ryan Greenblatt, Samuel Albanie, Stephanie Ballard, and Thomas Larsen
| January 2026

Leading artificial intelligence companies have started to use their own systems to accelerate research and development, with each generation of AI systems contributing to building the next generation. This report distills points of consensus and disagreement from our July 2025 expert workshop on how far the automation of AI R&D could go, laying bare crucial underlying assumptions and identifying what new evidence could shed light on the trajectory going forward.

CSET submitted the following response to the White House Office of Science and Technology in support of its "Accelerating the American Scientific Enterprise initiative.

Reports

China’s Embodied AI: A Path to AGI

William Hannas, Huey-Meei Chang, Valentin Weber, and Daniel Chou
| December 2025

China is embracing “embodied AI”—artificial intelligence integrated with physical agents, such as robots and drones—both for commercial reasons and as a path to artificial general intelligence (AGI). The trend reflects China’s signature approach to AI, which recognizes diverse paths to AI dominance vis-à-vis the large models favored in the United States. This report documents PRC support for AI embodiment, describes how it is understood by China’s research community, and maps out the related infrastructure.