Leadership

System of systems integration is my research area and my passion; integrating technology and diplomacy for mutual benefit is the grandest manifestation of this approach.

Manipulated media, including Deep Fakes, may causes changes in our society in how we interact with each other. What do we believe is true may get a lot more complicated. My role is to educate people on the threat and provide tools to detect and migrate manipulated media.

Seventy-five years after the invention of the transistor, semiconductor chips with billions of transistors are everywhere. They transformed the 20th century by enabling satellite communication, the Internet, weather prediction, smart phones, and much more. Still far from a mature technology, a new era of semiconductor technology is just beginning, and its impact on the 21st century will be even greater than its transformative impact on the 20th century.

In a time when technology, on a global level, increasingly penetrates our professional and private life, it is obvious that the merger of technology and diplomacy should be high on any societal agenda.

I am passionate about making connections between disparate fields, such as engineering, computer science, and social science broadly understood to understand human collaboration and conflict on a large scale. I am a practical theorist who believes that there is no more practical thing than a good theory or model.

Tech diplomacy will be central to democratically meeting future food and nutrition demands, particularly as the global population expands in the most food insecure regions of the world.

The energy transition will happen only if new technological innovations in electrified processes will make them better and cheaper than fossil-driven ones. The final cost will be heavily depending on policy decisions, on a global scale. A major breakthrough in diplomacy is needed to guide public funds and legislation to create the nexus point of industrial productivity for our nation, ensure global economic competitiveness, and increase U.S. energy security. Perhaps no other area of tech diplomacy will be more important.

Senior Research Fellow; Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University

Freedom is the oxygen of innovation, and the world needs increasingly more and more innovation to survive and thrive in the future. Tech-diplomacy is the most important tool we have today for addressing globally, the grand challenges of inequality and climate change.

As synthetic biology and biomedical engineering technologies become more ubiquitous and have impact in our daily lives, it is critical that we develop cohesive and inclusive principals with our international partners that govern access and ethical use of the technology consistent with our values.

Science and technology do not exist in a vacuum. Policy makers and global leaders must share a common language with scientists and engineers to make the best decisions for both domestic and international interests. This is particularly critical in the face of growing needs for national security (physical and cyber), global economic considerations, and the necessity to address environmental and energy demands.

Trusted Connectivity represents the Free World framework to meet global digital and infrastructure demands. It offers continuity, consistency and complementarity across individual national and regional trust and connectivity initiatives including EU’s Global Gateway, Three Seas Initiative (3SI), Blue Dot Network, Africa Agenda 2063, ASEAN Connectivity Master Plan, etc.

The robust use of technology in international affairs will define the future practice of diplomacy and, more importantly, the strength of democracy, human rights and prosperity in the US and the democratic world.

There are competing international development models and worldviews, and technology is a key component in both. The American development model deploys technology to support developing nations’ self-determination and improve peoples’ lives. Competing development models use technology as a means of control, robbing nations of their sovereignty. Diplomatic engagement is vital to clarify the different development paths nations face — and to build lasting partnerships that improves lives, increases opportunity, and fosters freedom across the globe.

Tech diplomacy will steer the direction of the new economy and the Fourth Industrial Revolution, whether built on foundations of freedom or control.

Technology is the bedrock for all future diplomatic engagement. Whether it be transformational hardware, labor force participation or value generated from digital assets — how the world comes together, or moves apart, will be determined by how nations come to terms with these defining features of the next generation.

AI is making decision-makers uncomfortable. We are used to leaders going through many layers of approval; by the time of decision, the question is no longer relevant. AI tools help us make quicker decisions, especially in cyber.

International partnerships accelerate technological advancements, and interoperability of innovations ensures the safety and security of the United States and our allies. Purdue’s groundbreaking initiative brings Technology Diplomacy to the forefront of international engagement and strengthens the foundation for peace and security worldwide.

As a former Assistant Secretary at the U.S. State Department, I saw first hand the critical intersection between technology and diplomacy. In a world where technology is no longer a separate industry, but rather the foundation of every industry, we should work with global partners to ensure that tech is a positive force for global citizens, especially the most vulnerable. The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue is at the center of promoting this idea.

Since its founding, the Krach Institute has brought innovators and policymakers together to ensure emerging technologies are used to advance freedom, safety, and prosperity around the world. I am honored to be able to contribute to this mission. We have only scratched the surface of Artificial Intelligence and the importance it has for protecting our nation. Our ability to not only advance this technology, but also operationalize it, is critical to keep us ahead of our adversaries.

Organizations who embrace zero trust will find embracing 5G, with all of its security challenges, a lot easier, a lot faster, and a lot safer.

Integrity, accountability, and transparency are essential to governing new technologies in a way that cultivates human flourishing. The Chinese Communist Party relentlessly pursues an ulterior proposition: the global extension of ubiquitous surveillance and arbitrary manipulation to serve its own corrosive ideological purposes. Safeguarding the future of the international digital world is a multigenerational endeavor demanding farsighted leadership, operational savvy, and stronger bonds between technologists and diplomats in likeminded nations. It is a privilege to support Under Secretary Krach in pioneering the emergent terrain of trusted technology policy.