Geostrategies
How 2026 Could Decide the Future of Artificial Intelligence
(Council on Foreign Relations) Artificial intelligence (AI) is entering a decisive phase—one defined less by speculative breakthroughs than by the hard realities of governance, adoption, and strategic competition. As AI systems move from experimentation to widespread deployment, policymakers face mounting pressure to translate abstract principles into enforceable rules, while managing the economic and security consequences of uneven adoption across countries and sectors. For the United States and its partners, the challenge is no longer whether AI will reshape society but how and under whose rules. In this collection of perspectives, six Council on Foreign Relations tech fellows examine the forces that will shape AI’s trajectory in 2026. Together, they explore the frictions between regulation and innovation, the quiet but consequential spread of AI across civilian and military institutions, and the intensifying geopolitical contest—particularly with China—over standards, markets, and strategic advantage. Their analyses underscore a common theme: Decisions made in the coming year will help determine where responsibility, power, and opportunity ultimately concentrate in the AI era. – https://www.cfr.org/article/how-2026-could-decide-future-artificial-intelligence
China’s AI Rise: Innovation Overcomes Chipmaking and Investment Gaps
(Sovereign Magazine) In January 2026, two Chinese AI startups, MiniMax and Zhipu AI, raised over USD 1.1 billion in their Hong Kong IPOs. This milestone reflects growing market confidence in China’s ability to compete globally in artificial intelligence, despite critical challenges. The country lacks advanced chipmaking tools and faces a significant investment gap with the United States, yet through innovation, government backing, and a rising culture of risk-taking, China’s AI sector is advancing at an unprecedented pace. – https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/science-tech/artificial-intelligence/chinas-ai-rise-innovation-overcomes-chipmaking-investment-gaps/
Governance and Regulation
USA’s exit from international organizations leaves digital governance largely unscathed
(Jovan Kurbalija – Diplo) On 7 January, the United States withdrew from a slate of international organisations and initiatives. It was not a surprise, following the overall spirit of Trump’s administration strategy towards the UN and international cooperation. Despite the wider retrenchment, the technology and digital governance ecosystem was largely spared. Most major tech-relevant bodies remained on the ‘white list,’ including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). In the digital space, only two initiatives were explicitly dropped: the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) and the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE). The bigger uncertainty lies elsewhere: the US decision to step back from UNCTAD and UN DESA could still create knock-on effects for digital initiatives linked to them, including Commission for Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and WSIS follow-up processes. among others. – https://www.diplomacy.edu/blog/usas-exit-from-international-organizations-leaves-digital-governance-largely-unscathed/
Moroccan Government Plans AI Roadmap to 2030, Targets $10B GDP Contribution
(Wearetech.Africa) Morocco plans to launch its “Maroc IA 2030” strategy to modernize public services, enhance digital interoperability, and strengthen economic competitiveness. The government will establish Al‑Jazari Institutes, a national network of AI centers of excellence linking research, innovation, and regional economic actors. The initiative complements Digital Morocco 2030, targeting 240,000 digital jobs and $10 billion contribution to GDP by 2030, while improving Morocco’s AI readiness ranking in MENA and globally. – https://www.wearetech.africa/en/fils-uk/news/tech/moroccan-government-plans-ai-roadmap-to-2030-targets-10b-gdp-contribution
eSafety raises concerns about misuse of Grok to generate sexualised content
(eSafety Commissioner Australia) eSafety remains concerned about the use of the generative AI system Grok on X to generate content that may sexualise or exploit people, particularly children. While the number of reports eSafety has received remains small, eSafety has seen a recent increase from almost none to seve ral reports over the past couple of weeks relating to the use of Grok to generate sexualised or exploitative imagery. eSafety will use its powers, including removal notices, where appropriate and where material meets the relevant thresholds defined in the Online Safety Act. – https://www.esafety.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/esafety-raises-concerns-about-misuse-of-grok-to-generate-sexualised-content
Welsh government backs AI adoption with £2.1m support
(DigWatch) The Welsh Government is providing £2.1 million in funding to support small and medium-sized businesses across Wales in adopting AI. The initiative aims to promote the ethical and practical use of AI, enhancing productivity and competitiveness. – https://dig.watch/updates/welsh-government-backs-ai-adoption
EU Regulations Are Not Ready for Multi-Agent AI Incidents
(Natàlia Fernández Ashman, Usman Anwar, Marta Bieńkiewicz – Tech Policy Press) In August this year, the European Commission’s guidelines for Article 73 of the EU AI Act will come into force. The guidelines mandate deployers and providers to report serious incidents related to AI systems in high-risk environments such as critical infrastructure. This is a timely release. Nick Moës, Executive Director of The Future Society, warned during the flagship Athens Roundtablein London last December: “This may be one of the last years in which we can still prevent an AI disaster as defined by the OECD. The scale and growth of incidents we are witnessing is already concerning.”. Is the regulation we are developing fit for purpose? As we expressed in our recent submission to the Commission’s consultation on draft guidance and reporting template on serious AI incidents, the draft already contains a worrying loophole that must be addressed. They focus on single-agent and single-occurrence failures, and assume a simplistic one-on-one causality map for AI-related incidents. Yet some of the most serious risks are already emerging from interactions between AI systems, where multiple occurrences can lead to cascading, cumulative effects. An incident reporting framework that ensures accountability for these new risks must be part of the EU AI Act’s implementation. With Article 73 guidelines set to become binding in August, the clock is ticking for the European Commission to embed these changes. – https://www.techpolicy.press/eu-regulations-are-not-ready-for-multiagent-ai-incidents/
Why Gig Platform Wage Theft is a Governance Crisis
(David Sathuluri – Tech Policy Press) In May, the Human Rights Watch nonprofit released a damning investigation that should alarm policymakers worldwide. The group argued that the seven largest gig platforms in the United States — Amazon Flex, DoorDash, Favor, Instacart, Lyft, Shipt and Uber — are using algorithmic systems not simply to manage workers but to systematically extract labor while evading fundamental legal obligations. The report, “The Gig Trap: Algorithmic, Wage and Labor Exploitation in Platform Work in the US,” exposes what amounts to a crisis of AI governance algorithms that have become the primary instrument through which corporations deprive workers of minimum wage protection, disable collective bargaining, and execute instant termination without due process. Yet despite this, the response in Washington and state legislatures has been fragmented, timid and ultimately inadequate. The problem is not that algorithms manage workers — it is that they have become employers without accountability, and our legal system has not caught up. – https://www.techpolicy.press/why-gig-platform-wage-theft-is-a-governance-crisis/
Legislation
Malta – Government to draft new laws targeting abusive use of deepfakes, Abela says
(Independent) The government is preparing new legal recommendations to curb the abusive use of deepfake technology, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced during a meeting with participants in the National Youth Parliament. Speaking as the National Youth Council presented the 2025 work report of the National Youth Parliament, Abela said the government is currently reviewing existing legislation with the aim of introducing penalties for the misuse of artificial intelligence to harass, blackmail or bully individuals. – https://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2026-01-13/local-news/Government-to-draft-new-laws-targeting-abusive-use-of-deepfakes-Abela-says-6736286303
UK – Parliament Asks Security Pros to Shape Cyber Security and Resilience Bill
(Phil Muncaster – Infosecurity Magazine) A parliamentary committee has asked for industry input to help it better scrutinize the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill (CSRB). First trailed in the King’s Speech in 2024, the CSRB is the long-awaited successor to the NIS Regulations 2018 and promises a NIS2-style revamp of UK cyber regulation for critical infrastructure sectors. Having completed its second reading in parliament last week, it has now reached the committee stage, where the legislation will be subject to further review – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/parliament-security-pros-cyber/
Security and Surveillance
SHADOW#REACTOR Campaign Uses Text-Only Staging to Deploy Remcos RAT
(Alessandro Mascellino – Infosecurity Magazine) A multi-stage Windows malware campaign, tracked as SHADOW#REACTOR, has been analyzed by cybersecurity researchers, revealing a complex infection chain designed to stealthily deploy the Remcos remote access Trojan. The campaign, discovered by the Securonix Threat Research team, relies on a sequence of scripts and in-memory loaders that abuse legitimate Windows tools to evade detection while maintaining persistence. The attack begins with the execution of an obfuscated Visual Basic Script (VBS) launched via wscript.exe. This initial script does little more than hand off execution. It constructs and runs a heavily encoded PowerShell command in memory, avoiding obvious malicious indicators on disk. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/shadowreactor-text-staging-remcos/
Phishing Scams Exploit Browser-in-the-Browser Attacks to Steal Facebook Passwords
(Danny Palmer – Infosecurity Magazine) Cybercriminals are using are increasingly using a sneaky browser-in-the-browser (BitB) attack technique in efforts to steal login credentials of Facebook users. According to analysis by cybersecurity researchers at Trellix, there has been a surge in attackers distributing phishing emails which lure users towards trustworthy looking authentication screens with the intention of harvesting usernames and passwords. It is thought that the aim of the attacks is to takeover accounts to steal personal data, commit identity fraud or spread scams to the users’ contacts. With over three billion users, Facebook remains a tempting target for cyber criminals to undertake attacks and scams. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/phishing-scams-exploit-browser/
New Chinese-Made Malware Framework Targets Linux-Based Cloud Environments
(Kevin Poireault – Infosecurity Magazine) A new Linux malware framework linked to Chinese-affiliated actors has been discovered by security researchers at Check Point Research. This highly modular framework, named VoidLink by its developers, includes over 30 plugins, cloud and container persistence capabilities and robust operational security (OPSEC) features. While no evidence of real-world infections linked to VoidLink have been observed and it is not clear if the framework is intended to be sold as a legitimate penetration testing tool or a cybercriminal toolkit, its documentation suggests it is intended for commercial purposes. It appears to be built and maintained by Chinese-speaking developers and is actively evolving, Check Point researchers noted in a report published on January 13. The VoidLink developers demonstrate a high level of technical expertise, with strong proficiency across multiple programming languages. With VoidLink, they offer a sophisticated, feature rich tool to move through cloud environments and container ecosystems with adaptive stealth. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/chinese-malware-framework-linux/
Global Magecart Campaign Targets Six Card Networks
(Phil Muncaster – Infosecurity Magazine) Security researchers have warned of a major digital skimming campaign that has gone undetected since 2022. Silent Push said the campaign uses scripts targeting at least six major payment network providers: American Express, Diners Club, Discover, JCB, Mastercard and UnionPay. Given these account for the majority of credit card payments worldwide, most locally issued cards are at risk, it added. Known generically as “Magecart,” these attacks typically involve malicious JavaScript covertly injected into an e-commerce website or payment portal. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/global-magecart-campaign-six-card/
Defence and Warfare
Russia–PRC Technology and Hybrid Operations
(The Jamestown Foundation) Technological innovation is reshaping the modern battlefield. Russia and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are combining conventional warfare with electromagnetic disruption, cyber attacks, digital influence campaigns, and unmanned and autonomous systems to target U.S. partners and allies. The frontline states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are under mounting pressure from these new technological threats. Russian violations of Polish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Romanian airspace, as well as GPS spoofing and sabotage of critical undersea infrastructure, particularly fiber-optic cables, in the Baltic and Arctic regions, illustrate the expanding scope of targeting technology and its use for subversive means. These activities reflect a broader shift toward multi-domain warfare, where ambiguity and deniability are key assets. Drone warfare is now a central feature of this evolving technological domain. Ukraine has become a world-leading drone producer and pioneer of maritime and autonomous systems since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. The PRC has also recently unveiled new unmanned systems capabilities for use in a Taiwan contingency, signaling its intent to operationalize lessons from Russia’s war in Ukraine. The PRC and Russia’s military technological modernization builds on decades of Cold War-era research, illicit procurement networks, and recent battlefield experience in Ukraine. Military technology procurement, however, remains a challenge. The PRC and Russia are exploiting procurement loopholes and legacy networks to accelerate the acquisition of military technology. Beijing continues to use middlemen and shell companies to circumvent export controls, while Moscow faces constraints from sanctions, talent shortages, and budget limitations that hinder sustained innovation and production. The development of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled command systems, autonomous platforms, and integrated air defenses depends on state investment. Russia and the PRC are not merely modernizing their military technology and capabilities; they are reengineering the operational environment to exploit systemic vulnerabilities in Western defense architectures. Deterrence in this environment will depend less on mass and more on agility, resilience, and adaptability to counter new and evolving technological threats before they escalate. – https://jamestown.org/strategic-snapshot-russia-prc-technology-and-hybrid-operations/
Frontiers and Markets
NVIDIA and Lilly Announce Co-Innovation AI Lab to Reinvent Drug Discovery in the Age of AI
(NVIDIA) NVIDIA and Lilly bring together a world-leading, multidisciplinary team of scientists, AI researchers and engineers to address the hardest problems in drug discovery. The co-innovation lab infrastructure will be built on the NVIDIA BioNeMo platform and the NVIDIA Vera Rubin architecture. NVIDIA and Lilly will pioneer robotics and physical AI to accelerate and scale medicine discovery and production. – https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-and-lilly-announce-co-innovation-lab-to-reinvent-drug-discovery-in-the-age-of-ai
AI’s Next Revolution: Multiply Labs Is Scaling Robotics-Driven Cell Therapy Biomanufacturing Labs
(NVIDIA) Multiply Labs is doing for cell therapy labs what has already happened in the chip industry: It’s introducing robots to do the tedious, precision and hygienic work better, faster and cheaper. The startup concept was sparked when Fred Parietti was at MIT doing PhD research in robotics and he met with Alice Melocchi, who showed him how these laborious labs lacked automation while risking contamination. “She showed me what she did in a lab and how difficult it was, and I couldn’t believe it — I thought drugs were made like chips, and this was insane but also real,” said Parietti, co-founder and CEO of Multiply Labs. “Next, I flew to Silicon Valley, and we started this at YCombinator.”. San Francisco-based Multiply Labs, founded in 2016, today is automating cell therapy manufacturing with robots for leading companies, including Kyverna Therapeutics and Legend Biotech. – https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/multiply-labs-isaac-omniverse/
From lab to market, China accelerates frontier tech deployment
(People’s Daily Online) From robots deployed at airports and hotels to autonomous vehicles navigating city roads and quantum computing tackling complex industrial calculations, innovations in China are moving rapidly from laboratories into real-world applications. At Hefei Xinqiao International Airport in Hefei, the capital of east China’s Anhui Province, a wheeled humanoid robot named Zerith H1 glides through the restrooms, automatically adjusting its height to collect trash, wipe stains from countertops, and mop the floor. – https://en.people.cn/n3/2026/0112/c90000-20412712.html