CSET (Center for Security and Emerging Technology)
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📊 33📈 2🔗 10📚 19•8%Score: 15/15
LLM Summary:CSET is a $100M+ Georgetown center with 50+ staff conducting data-driven AI policy research, particularly on U.S.-China competition and export controls. The center conducts hundreds of annual government briefings and operates the Emerging Technology Observatory with 10 public tools and 8 datasets.
Issues (2):
QualityRated 43 but structure suggests 100 (underrated by 57 points)
Helen TonerResearcherHelen TonerComprehensive biographical profile of Helen Toner documenting her career from EA Melbourne founder to CSET Interim Executive Director, with detailed timeline of the November 2023 OpenAI board crisi...Quality: 43/100 (Interim Executive Director, September 2025)
The Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) is the largest AI policy research center in the United States, housed within Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service. Founded in January 2019 with a $15 million grant from Coefficient Giving (then Open PhilanthropyOrganizationOpen PhilanthropyOpen Philanthropy rebranded to Coefficient Giving in November 2025. See the Coefficient Giving page for current information.), CSET has grown to become a dominant force in shaping U.S. technology policy, particularly regarding artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and competition with China.
CSET’s mission centers on providing decision-makers with data-driven analysis on the security implications of emerging technologies. Unlike many think tanks that rely primarily on qualitative policy analysis, CSET has invested heavily in data infrastructure and quantitative research capabilities. The organization’s Emerging Technology Observatory (ETO) hosts 10 public tools and 8 open datasets, providing unprecedented visibility into global AI research, patenting, and investment trends.
The organization’s theory of impact operates through multiple channels: direct policy engagement through congressional testimony and government briefings, open-source data tools that inform policy decisions, translation of Chinese-language documents to increase transparency about China’s AI ambitions, and rigorous research publications that shape the intellectual framework for AI policy debates. In 2024 alone, CSET researchers conducted hundreds of briefings with government officials and industry leaders, testified before Congress multiple times, and published over 80 pieces of analysis.
CSET’s work spans several interconnected research areas: the foundations of AI development (talent, data, and computing power), AI applications in national security contexts, U.S.-China technology competition, export controls and semiconductor policy, and increasingly, the security dimensions of biotechnology. This breadth of coverage, combined with deep technical expertise and strong government relationships, has made CSET an essential resource for policymakers navigating complex technology decisions.
CSET was established through a major philanthropic initiative by Coefficient Giving (then Open Philanthropy), which recommended a $15 million grant over five years to Georgetown University specifically to create a new think tank at the intersection of national security and emerging technologies. The founding was motivated by a perceived gap in rigorous, technically-informed policy analysis on AI security issues.
Milestone
Date
Details
Coefficient GivingOrganizationCoefficient GivingCoefficient Giving (formerly Open Philanthropy) has directed $4B+ in grants since 2014, including $336M to AI safety (~60% of external funding). The organization spent ~$50M on AI safety in 2024, w...Quality: 55/100 grant approved
Jason Gaverick Matheny served as CSET’s founding director from 2019 until he joined the Biden administration. His background uniquely positioned him to bridge intelligence community expertise with academic research:
Role
Organization
Years
Director
Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA)
2015-2018
Assistant Director of National Intelligence
ODNI
Concurrent with IARPA
Research Affiliate
Future of Humanity InstituteOrganizationFuture of Humanity InstituteThe Future of Humanity Institute (2005-2024) was a pioneering Oxford research center that founded existential risk studies and AI alignment research, growing from 3 to ~50 researchers and receiving...Quality: 51/100, Oxford
Prior to IARPA
Founder
New Harvest (cellular agriculture research)
2004
Deputy Assistant to the President
White House
2021-2023
Deputy Director for National Security
OSTP
2021-2023
Matheny’s transition to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where he served as Deputy Director for National Security and Coordinator for Technology and National Security at the National Security Council, demonstrated CSET’s success in placing personnel in key government positions.
Helen Toner was named Interim Executive Director effective September 2, 2025, succeeding Dewey Murdick. Toner was named to TIME magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in AI in 2024 and has been central to CSET’s strategy and research agenda since its founding.
Attribute
Details
Education
MA in Security Studies (Georgetown), BSc in Chemical Engineering (Melbourne)
U.S.-China AI competition, AI safety and governance
Beijing Experience
Lived in Beijing studying Chinese AI ecosystem as Oxford GovAI affiliate
Publications
Foreign Affairs, The Economist, TIME
Congressional Testimony
Multiple committees including House Judiciary Subcommittee
Toner’s appointment reflects CSET’s dual focus on U.S.-China competition and AI safety/governance issues. Her experience at Coefficient Giving and Oxford’s Centre for the Governance of AILab ResearchGovAIGovAI is an AI policy research organization with ~15-20 staff, funded primarily by Coefficient Giving ($1.8M+ in 2023-2024), that has trained 100+ governance researchers through fellowships and cur...Quality: 43/100 positions her to bridge the AI safety and national security communities.
China analysis is central to CSET’s mission, reflecting the organization’s origins in concerns about AI-enabled competition between great powers.
Research Stream
Key Focus
Notable Outputs
Translation Program
Chinese-language AI policy documents
Generative AI safety standards, industrial policies, white papers
Workforce Analysis
China’s AI talent pipeline
”Assessing China’s AI Workforce” (cited by Nature)
Cognitive AI Research
China’s AGI ambitions
Assessment of Chinese scientific literature on AGI
Embodied AI
Robotics and physical AI systems
Analysis of China’s approach to physical AI agents
Export Control Impact
Effect of U.S. controls on Chinese AI
Huawei chip analysis (among top 4 most-read 2024 papers)
CSET maintains an in-house translation team that provides English versions of Chinese government policies, research papers, and technical standards. These Translation Snapshots have become essential resources for policymakers seeking to understand China’s AI strategy without relying on machine translation.
Launched in January 2020 under the direction of retired Lt. General John Bansemer, the CyberAI Project examines the intersection of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
Research Area
Description
ML Vulnerabilities
Technical analysis of machine learning security weaknesses
Cyber Operations
AI/ML potential uses in offensive and defensive cyber
Disinformation
How AI may amplify future influence campaigns
Geostrategic Competition
U.S.-China dynamics in cyber and AI
The Hewlett Foundation awarded CSET an additional $1 million specifically to continue cyber and AI research, reflecting the strategic importance of this program.
CSET researchers analyze how AI is being integrated into military systems and operations.
Focus Area
Key Work
Project Maven
Analysis of how DOD operationalized AI
18th Airborne Corps
Case study of AI implementation
China’s Military AI
Translation and analysis of PLA AI doctrine
Defense Procurement
Analysis of 2,857 AI-related defense contracts (2023-2024)
CSET’s research on China’s perspectives on AI warfare was among the four most widely read pieces in 2024, indicating strong demand for understanding adversary approaches to military AI.
CSET has become a leading voice on semiconductor policy and export controls, areas of increasing policy importance.
Publication/Analysis
Impact
”No Permits, No Fabs”
Cited by Wall Street Journal
”AI Chips: What They Are and Why They Matter”
Referenced by Business Insider
Export Control Analysis
Op-eds warning against relaxing chip export controls
Huawei Chip Development
Analysis of how China circumvents U.S. controls
Jacob Feldgoise, Senior Data Research Analyst, specializes in AI chip supply chains and export controls, providing technical depth to CSET’s policy analysis.
The Emerging Technology Observatory represents CSET’s most significant investment in data infrastructure, launched in 2022 to provide public access to emerging technology analysis tools.
CSET’s merged corpus of scholarly literature intentionally incorporates the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), a key Chinese-language source, alongside English-language sources like Web of Science, Dimensions, Microsoft Academic Graph, arXiv, and Papers With Code. This methodological choice enables more accurate assessment of Chinese AI research output, revealing that China’s lead in AI research is greater than English-only analyses suggest.
CSET has secured funding through 2025, with the 2023 grant agreement boosting total funding to more than $100 million. The organization is self-funded through this period, providing stability for long-term research programs.