Weekly Digest on AI and Emerging Technologies (27 January 2025)

HIGHLIGHTS FROM DAILY DIGEST – WEEK 20 TO 24 JANUARY 2025

 

Governance and Legislation

 

Trump signs AI executive order

 

(Alexandra Kelley, Frank Konkel, Natalie Alms – NextGov – 23 January 2025) President Trump Thursday signed an executive order calling for the development of an AI action plan within 180 days that would “sustain and enhance America’s global AI dominance.”. “The United States has long been at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation, driven by the strength of our free markets, world-class research institutions, and entrepreneurial spirit,” the order states. “To maintain this leadership, we must develop AI systems that are free from ideological bias or engineered social agendas. With the right Government policies, we can solidify our position as the global leader in AI and secure a brighter future for all Americans.” – https://www.nextgov.com/artificial-intelligence/2025/01/trump-signs-ai-executive-order/402465/?oref=ng-home-top-story

What Just Happened: Trump’s Announcement of the Stargate AI Infrastructure Project

(Justin Hendrix – Just Security – 22 January 2025) On Tuesday, Jan. 21, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, and Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison appeared at the White House with President Donald Trump to announce the creation of a joint AI infrastructure project called Stargate. Introducing the CEOs, President Trump hailed Stargate as “ a new American company that will invest $500 billion at least in AI infrastructure in the United States and move and very, very quickly, moving very rapidly, creating over 100,000 American jobs almost immediately.” The goal of the venture, Trump said, is to “build the physical and virtual infrastructure to power the next generation of advancements in AI. And this will include the construction of colossal data centers, very, very massive structures. I was in the real estate business. These buildings, these are big, beautiful buildings.” – https://www.justsecurity.org/106688/what-happened-trumps-announcement-stargate-ai-project/

The Dawn of Artificial General Intelligence?

 

(Andrew Ng, Yoshua Bengio, Nicholas Thompson, Yejin Choi, Jonathan Ross, Thomas Wolf – WEF – 22 January 2025) Artificial general intelligence could possess the versatility to reason, learn and innovate in any task. But with rising concerns about job losses, surveillance and deepfakes, will AGI be a force for progress or a threat to the very fabric of humanity? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/the-dawn-of-artificial-general-intelligence/

The OECD-African Union AI Dialogue 2.0: From strategy to implementation

 

(Joseph Phillips, Amr Farouk Safwat, Jamie Berryhill – OECD.AI – 22 January 2025) The OECD-African Union (AU) AI Dialogue, held in Cairo from 19 to 21 November 2024, brought together participants from more than 30 countries—including 20 AU member states—to work together on concrete action steps to implement the Continental AI Strategy. As a follow-up to the first OECD-AU AI Dialogue in March, the event featured more than 40 speakers across 11 sessions focused on achieving the strategy’s key objectives. – https://oecd.ai/en/wonk/the-oecd-african-union-ai-dialogue-2-0-from-strategy-to-implementation

Cracking the Code of Digital Health

 

(Roy Jakobs, Karen Tso, Shobana Kamineni, Gianrico Farrugia, M.D., Nikolaj Gilbert – WEF – 22 January 2025) From AI integration to data usage, the healthcare sector has capitalized on the post-COVID momentum to rethink its operations across the value chain. However, transformations remain in the early stages and organizations have yet to crack the code on generating value at scale. – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/cracking-the-code-of-digital-health/

 

Tech’s Answer to Pollution

 

(Takayuki Morita, Ronaldo Lemos, Manuela Kasper-Claridge, Jessika Roswall – WEF – 22 January 2025) Biotech, AI and other advanced technologies are opening new possibilities in material science and resource circularity. What are the most promising technologies and how can they address pollution in the air, land, or marine ecosystems? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/techs-answer-to-pollution/

 

AI: Lifting All Boats

(Hatem Dowidar, Brad Smith, Bill Thomas, Paula Ingabire, Kristalina Georgieva, Vijay Vythianathan Vaitheeswaran – WEF – 22 January 2025)  As the race for AI leadership intensifies, access to resilient digital infrastructure, advanced computer capabilities and strong public-private investment are essential. A few countries are sprinting ahead, securing their competitive advantage, while others struggle to keep up. What strategies can bridge this growing AI divide and ensure more equitable access to AI benefits globally? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/ai-lifting-all-boats/

 

State of Play: AI Governance

(Samir Saran, Arvind Krishna, Arthur Mensch, Clara Chappaz, Abdullah AlSwaha – WEF – 22 January 2025) Despite the proliferation of AI governance frameworks, fragmentation and lack of coordination have hindered the responsible innovation, development and deployment of this technology. With AI’s global impact, how can we reduce governance gaps and foster a collaborative and interoperable approach? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/state-of-play-ai-governance/

Mandatory MFA, Biometrics Make Headway in Middle East, Africa

(Robert Lemos – Dark Reading – 22 January 2025) National governments and companies in the Middle East and Africa continue to push for more widely available digital identity systems to allow citizens to connect and authenticate to digital government services and commercial services. In Morocco, the government issued more than 4.6 million electronic identity cards in 2024 and expanded its digital infrastructure with a trusted third-party authentication platform in an effort to offer new services and cut cybercrime rates. More than 7.2 million people are now enrolled in the United Arab Emirates’ official digital ID, known as UAE Pass, and can authenticate to websites. And the National Bank of Egypt has adopted a single sign-on infrastructure that will allow its employees to use a variety of authentication methods, and which will eventually be rolled out to its millions of customers. – https://www.darkreading.com/cybersecurity-operations/mfa-biometrics-make-headway-middle-east-africa

 

All the AI risks we cannot see

(Vaibhav Garg – Observer Research Foundation – 21 January 2025) Artificial intelligence (AI), both generative and discriminative, has many use cases across sectors, domains, and customers. Developers who aim to build associated solutions rarely begin by developing an AI model from scratch; instead, they rely on model repositories or Model Lakes to leverage pre-trained models and libraries like HuggingFace, PyPi, and Kaggle. This is not necessarily unique to AI; generally, developers leverage a significant amount of third-party code when building proprietary products. In the cybersecurity context, these third-party components become a hidden risk for product teams. Attackers recognise the complexity of addressing this risk and often use third-party components as a way to infiltrate entities. For example, a recent and prominent example of such an attack was by an actor attempting to exploit a backdoor in the XZ Utils utility used by a variety of Linux distributions. AI libraries can similarly be compromised, for instance, by using unsafe serialisation. This problem may be exacerbated for AI libraries based on more opaque technologies; for example, attackers may be able to embed malware into model weights. – https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/all-the-ai-risks-we-cannot-see

Leaving Asia’s Comfort Zone

(Milton Cheng, Haslinda Amin, Pichai Naripthaphan, Gan Kim Yong, Martha Sazon, Angela Wang Nan – WEF – 21 January 2025) The rise of AI and other emerging technologies has the potential to catapult Asia-Pacific from the industrial era into the Intelligent Age, where the region will need to chart a new path outside the comfort of pursuing tried and tested growth models. What measures are necessary for countries in Asia to remain competitive and how can the region reap the benefits of this new era while leaving no country behind? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/leaving-aseans-comfort-zone/

From Crisis to Confidence in Cyberspace

(George Kurtz, Öykü Işık, George Oliver, John Defterios – WEF – 21 January 2025) Some 75% of organizations report an erosion of customer trust following a cyber incident, with damaging effect to business performance and brand reputation. What are the best collaborative and most responsible approaches to build and maintain trust before, during and post crisis? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/from-crisis-to-confidence/

Financial Institutions: Finding Their Way to Innovate

(Valérie Urbain, Iain Williamson, Alison Snyder, David Vélez, Hisham Alrayes, Julio Velarde – WEF – 21 January 2025) Enthusiasm for AI, quantum computing and other emerging technologies in financial services is high, with AI investments alone projected to reach $45 billion in 2024. However, the rapid pace of technological change is straining financial institutions and the broader financial system. How can financial services firms adapt to the new pace of change and fully capitalize on technological advancements? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/financial-institutions-finding-their-way-to-innovate/

Reinventing Digital Inclusion

(Fatoumata Ba, Paula Ingabire, Karen Tso, Strive Masiyiwa, Robert F. Smith – WEF – 21 January 2025) As technologies reshape our world, the digital divide risks deepening unless urgent action is taken. To ensure everyone can benefit from the intelligent age, we need to take practical steps to bridge digital gaps. What innovative solutions ensure that the future of technology is accessible to all and digital inclusion remains at the heart of global progress? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/reinventing-digital-inclusion/

The Future of the AI Diffusion Framework

(Sam Winter-Levy – Just Security – 21 January 2025) On Jan. 13, in one of its final acts, the Biden administration launched its most ambitious attempt yet to shape the future of AI. In its “Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion,” the first of a flurry of AI rules and executive orders released last week, the Biden administration tried to set the global terms for the market in advanced AI chips — the critical technology needed to build and run powerful AI systems. The rule is the administration’s answer to what will be a defining question for U.S. foreign policy and economic strategy in the coming years: how widely should the United States share its AI technologies? The regulation is an extraordinary assertion of U.S. power over information technology, an attempt to increase the baseline of security standards at AI data centers worldwide, and another salvo in the United States’ escalating AI competition with China. With President Donald Trump’s return to office, many of these eleventh-hour regulations will face significant scrutiny and potential rollback, especially in the face of a concerted lobbying campaign by U.S. industry. But as the new administration reviews its AI policy inheritance, it may find that the fundamental challenges that drove the design of the diffusion framework — balancing the protection of America’s technological edge with the promotion of U.S. systems and governance standards worldwide — remain as pressing as ever. In the coming days or weeks, the Trump administration will almost certainly walk back or adjust elements of the rule. But if it jettisons the framework in its entirety, it will need to design an alternative approach to plugging the gaps in its export controls on China without hindering the global rollout of U.S. AI infrastructure — and soon. – https://www.justsecurity.org/106545/the-future-of-the-ai-diffusion-framework/

Crypto at a Crossroads

(Jennifer Johnson, Denelle Dixon, Lesetja Kganyago, Brian Armstrong, Anthony Scaramucci, Spriha Srivastava – WEF – 21 January 2025) From possible regulatory shifts in the US to the uneven adoption of central bank digital currencies around the world, the prospects for digital assets are shifting rapidly. What is the outlook for these assets and how could policy changes impact the financial system? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/crypto-at-crossroads/

Unlocking the North Star for AI Adoption, Scaling and Global Impact

(Cedrik Neike, Almar Latour, Cathy Li, Aidan Gomez, Anais Rassat – WEF – 21 January 2025) AI adoption is growing rapidly, with 65% of organizations experimenting with generative AI. However, the journey from experimentation to large-scale impact remains a significant hurdle. Only 16% of companies are prepared for AI-enabled reinvention, and 74% face critical barriers to scaling AI solutions. To bridge this gap, the World Economic Forum unveils findings and solutions from its Industries in the Intelligent Age white paper series and unveils AI use cases showcasing adoption and scaling possibilities for the growth of the global economy. Following these findings, the Forum launches the Frontier MINDS—a program to spotlight and accelerate the most impactful AI solutions capable of revolutionizing industries and addressing society’s grand challenges, enabling organizations worldwide to scale AI in ways that maximize positive impact. – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/media-briefing-unlocking-the-north-star-for-ai-adoption-scaling-and-global-impact/

 

The hidden risks we scroll past: the problem with TikTok—and RedNote

(Jason Van der Schyff – ASPI The Strategist – 21 January 2025) What if the most popular apps on our phones were quietly undermining national security? Australians often focus on visible threats, but the digital realm poses less obvious yet equally significant dangers. Yet, when it comes to the digital landscape, a blind spot remains: the hidden risks posed by platforms such as TikTok and RedNote (Xiaohongshu). These apps are more than just harmless entertainment; they’re tools in a global battle for data and influence. And we, as a society, remain largely unaware. – https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-hidden-risks-we-scroll-past-the-problem-with-tiktok-and-rednote/

 

The TikTok boomerang

(Angela Huyue Zhang – ASPI The Strategist – 20 January 2025) Few predicted that TikTok users in the United States would flock to the Chinese app RedNote (Xiaohongshu) in defiance of a US government ban. And yet in the space of just two days this week, RedNote became the most downloaded app in the US, gaining 700,000 users—most of them American TikTok refugees. Since US data security was the rationale for the TikTok ban, American users’ migration to other Chinese apps only amplifies those concerns. Unlike TikTok—a platform that does not operate in China and is not subject to Chinese law—RedNote is a domestic Chinese app bound by strict Chinese regulations. Moreover, while TikTok says that it stores US user data exclusively within the US, with oversight by a US-led security team, RedNote stores its data entirely in China. – https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-tiktok-boomerang/

 

Social media as it should be

(Robin Berjon – ASPI The Strategist – 20 January 2025) Mathematician Cathy O’Neil once said that an algorithm is nothing more than someone’s opinion embedded in code. When we speak of the algorithms that power Facebook, X, TikTok, YouTube or Google Search, we are really talking about choices made by their owners about what information we, as users, should see. In these cases, algorithm is just a fancy name for an editorial line. Each outlet has a process of sourcing, filtering and ranking information that is structurally identical to the editorial work carried out in media—except that it is largely automated. – https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/social-media-as-it-should-be/

 

Trump signs order setting up DOGE with a focus on government tech

(Natalie Alms – NextGov – 20 January 2025) President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday to set up his Department of Government Efficiency, charged with “modernizing Federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity.”. Billionaire Elon Musk is leading the effort, which Trump set up shortly after the election to slash government headcount and spending. Originally, Trump said that the effort would be advisory. – https://www.nextgov.com/digital-government/2025/01/trump-signs-order-setting-doge-focus-government-tech/402358/?oref=ng-home-top-story

 

China’s STEM Edge Will Drive AI to Catch Up, Says Geoffrey Hinton

(James Dargan – AI Insider – 20 January 2025) In a recent interview, Geoffrey Hinton, often referred to as one of the “godfathers of AI,” talked about the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI), its global implications and the moral responsibility of those who develop it. Hinton’s thoughts offer a sobering yet pragmatic lens through which to view the challenges ahead. – https://theaiinsider.tech/2025/01/20/chinas-stem-edge-will-drive-ai-to-catch-up-says-geoffrey-hinton/

 

India’s AI Imperative: Building National Competencies in a New World Order

(Observer Research Foundation – 20 January 2025) Applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) could add trillions of dollars to economies globally in the coming years. By 2027, AI adoption is expected to help India achieve its ambitions of becoming a US$26-trillion economy—the world’s third largest.[1] Projections also indicate that up to 2027, India’s AI market could grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25-35 percent, with generative AI comprising 33 percent of the market share.[2] Indeed, AI is already propelling transformations across a broad spectrum of domains such as health, education, agriculture, and smart cities. – https://www.orfonline.org/research/india-s-ai-imperative-building-national-competencies-in-a-new-world-order

 

AI innovation in the UAE: Strategic use of AI-specific regulatory sandboxes

(Siddharth Yadav – Observer Research Foundation – 20 January 2025) Ever since the breakthrough launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, every major economy globally has incorporated Artificial Intelligence (AI) in its national strategy. Apart from the United States and China, the usual suspects in tech development and innovation, emerging players like the United Arab Emirates and India are placing heavy bets on AI. – https://www.orfonline.org/research/ai-innovation-in-the-uae-strategic-use-of-ai-specific-regulatory-sandboxes

The UN Cybercrime Convention: Key Features and Global Stances

(Manohar Parrikar Institute – 20 January 2025) The participation of multiple stakeholders in the adoption of the UN Convention against Cybercrime highlights the effectiveness of inclusive decision-making involving not just states but also civil society organisations. Despite mixed reactions, the convention offers a timely legal framework for information sharing and improved coordination among law enforcement agencies globally. – https://www.idsa.in/publisher/issue-brief/the-un-cybercrime-convention/

The case for consent in the AI data gold rush

(Courtney C. Radsch – Brookings – 16 January 2025) The use of publicly available but copyright-protected data to build the new generation of advanced AI models has prompted both governments and standards bodies to consider how to address the tension between AI companies and the publishers, content creators, and website owners whose data they depend on. The demand for text data has ended the symbiotic relationship between text mining bots and publishers, in which most legitimate bots respected publisher-specified access permissions while publishers received referral traffic. Requiring explicit opt-in consent for AI training would reinforce traditional copyright interpretations related to consent, underscore the principle that content creators have ultimate authority over how their work is used, and compel tech companies to develop systems that respect these rights. – https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-case-for-consent-in-the-ai-data-gold-rush/

Shifting the UK’s AI Focus: Labour’s Ambitious AI Action Plan

(Natasha Buckley, Pia Hüsch – RUSI – 16 January 2025) Labour’s ambitious AI Opportunities Action Plan sets a strong vision to leverage AI technologies for UK economic growth. How realistic are these plans, and do they come at the cost of AI safety, the previous government’s priority? – https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/shifting-uks-ai-focus-labours-ambitious-ai-action-plan

For AI to make government work better, reduce risk and increase transparency

(Valerie Wirtschafter – Brookings – 16 January 2025) Democracies around the world face a fundamental challenge: their citizens do not believe they can deliver results. Recent surveys of the countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show declining trust in government, driven in part by the perception that public institutions are neither responsive nor transparent. And a series of Pew Research Center polls show a clear decline in satisfaction with democracy across 12 advanced economies, including in the United States. To improve perceptions of the U.S. government among a subset of voters, the incoming Trump administration has promised to rein in waste and promote greater efficiency. What that means in practice is unclear, but the goal of making government better serve the people—while not new—is important across democracies. With a new wave of government advisers, many of whom come from the “techno-optimist” space, it seems inevitable that technological advances, including the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI), will be part of any proposed solution. –  https://www.brookings.edu/articles/for-ai-to-make-government-work-better-reduce-risk-and-increase-transparency/

Chinese Critiques of Large Language Models. Finding the Path to General Artificial Intelligence

(William Hannas, Huey-Meei Chang, Maximilian Riesenhuber, and Daniel Chou – Center for Security and Emerging Technology – January 2025) Large generative models are widely viewed as the most promising path to general (human-level) artificial intelligence and attract investment in the billions of dollars. The present enthusiasm notwithstanding, a chorus of ranking Chinese scientists regard this singular approach to AGI as ill-advised. This report documents these critiques in China’s research, public statements, and government planning, while pointing to additional, pragmatic reasons for China’s pursuit of a diversified research portfolio. – https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/chinese-critiques-of-large-language-models/

Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism

Algeria announces the non-binding guiding principles for Member States on preventing, detecting and disrupting the use of new and emerging financial technologies for terrorist purposes

(UN CTED – 21 January 2025)  On Tuesday, 21 January 2025, the Security Council held an open debate on “African-led and development-focused counter-terrorism: strengthening African leadership and implementation of counter-terrorism initiatives” under the agenda item “Maintenance of international peace and security” at United Nations Headquarters in New York. During his opening remarks, the Minister of State, Minister for Foreign Affairs, National Community Abroad and African Affairs of Algeria, Mr. Ahmed Attaf, referred to the newly adopted non-binding guiding principles for Member States on preventing, detecting, and disrupting the use of new and emerging financial technologies for terrorist purposes (Algeria Guiding Principles). – https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/ctc/news/algeria-announces-non-binding-guiding-principles-member-states-preventing-detecting-and?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1-B1Dcz4dvpUgOIHcW1c6kWWyF2LLkHap9brz_MbL_7XRgZjtJQNKc8WA_aem_Mk-qCtRj41GRbsnPivYBoA

Security

Cyber Insights 2025: Malware Directions

(SecurityWeek – 23 January 2025) Cyber Insights 2025 examines expert opinions on the expected evolution of more than a dozen areas of cybersecurity interest over the next 12 months. The continuing advance of AI brings the likelihood of effective, specific vulnerability-targeted new malware automatically produced in hours rather than days or weeks ever closer. – https://www.securityweek.com/cyber-insights-2025-malware-directions/

Ransomware Attacks Surge to Record High in December 2024

(James Coker – Infosecurity Magazine – 22 January 2025) The highest monthly volume of global ransomware attacks ever recorded occurred in December 2024, according to NCC Group’s latest Threat Pulse report. The security firm detected 574 ransomware attacks during the month, which is the highest number since it began monitoring ransomware activity in 2021. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ransomware-record-high-december/

 

Cutting through Cyber Complexity

(Katie Drummond, Gobind Singh Deo, Hoda Al Khzaimi, Robert M. Lee, Jay Chaudhry, Oscar López – WEF – 22 January 2025) Escalating cyberattacks, geopolitical instability and unprecedented technological shifts cast a shadow on an organization’s resilience. What emerging trends will reshape the cybersecurity model and how can global leaders harness these insights to build a more secure and equitable digital future? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/cutting-through-complexity-in-cyberspace/

The Forgotten War: Ransomware and Cyber Conflict Studies

(RUSI, Binding Hook – 22 January 2025) Scholars of cyber conflict have largely ignored the rise of ransomware as a national security threat. Counter-ransomware strategies would benefit from further interrogation from this community. – https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/external-publications/forgotten-war-ransomware-and-cyber-conflict-studies

 

Defense, Intelligence, and War

 

The Militarisation of AI and Evolving Nuclear Doctrines in South Asia: Challenges and Implications

(Dalir Khan – Australian Institute of International Affairs – 20 January 2025) The integration of Artificial Intelligence into military frameworks by India and Pakistan is reshaping regional security dynamics, fueling a doctrinal shift with profound implications for strategic stability. As AI-driven systems enhance military capabilities, the accompanying risks of miscalculation, escalation, and ethical dilemmas demand urgent dialogue and regulatory measures to mitigate potential conflict. – https://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/the-militarisation-of-ai-and-evolving-nuclear-doctrines-in-south-asia-challenges-and-implications/

Frontiers

Counterspace Capabilities: Renewed Hope for Cooperative Governance?

(Almudena Azcárate Ortega, Victoria Samson – Centre for International Governance Innovation – 23 January 2025) Ever since humankind first launched objects into space, counterspace capabilities (also known as “space weapons”) were developed to disrupt or destroy them. Now that space is increasingly being used for both civilian and military applications, space technologies have evolved to meet these needs, but regulations to protect space have lagged behind. This paper looks at how the international community is addressing the threats posed by these technologies through multilateral efforts and regulatory mechanisms to enhance space security. – https://www.cigionline.org/publications/counterspace-capabilities-renewed-hope-for-cooperative-governance/

 

Keeping up with Smart Factories

(Roland Busch, Tian Wei, Padraig McDonnell, Gan Kim Yong, Anish Shah – WEF – 22 January 2025) From AI-powered autonomous production lines and digital twins that simulate entire supply chains to next-gen robotics, manufacturers are eager to leverage frontier innovations to build intelligent, agile and resilient operations. How can companies harness and scale these frontier innovations to future-proof their operations in a world of constant change? – https://www.weforum.org/meetings/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2025/sessions/keeping-up-with-smart-factories/

 

Aftershocks: Disruptive Growth in Low Earth Orbit Creates New Policy Challenges

(Ruth Stilwell – Centre for International Governance Innovation – 21 January 2025) The emergence of large constellations of small satellites has disrupted the field of space safety services and changed how we think about the risk of collisions in space. The risk from space debris is compounded by the growing congestion from operational satellites in low-Earth orbit, particularly between 300 and 700 km above the Earth. These satellites have created an opportunity for commercial operators to assume roles that were once the exclusive domain of military or other state actors. While increasing commercial interest in providing the essential safety functions of space situational awareness and conjunction alerting may increase the pace of innovation, and emerging technologies may enable new approaches to reduce collision risk on orbit, there are associated core governance issues of safety, sustainability and security in outer space that must be considered. – https://www.cigionline.org/publications/aftershocks-disruptive-growth-in-low-earth-orbit-creates-new-policy-challenges/

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