Perry World House Hosts Conference on the Intersection of Nuclear Weapons and Emerging Technology

On September 16, 2026, Perry World House convened a conference on Emerging Technology Agreements for Nuclear Risk Reduction, co-led by Michael C. Horowitz, director of Perry World House, and Fiona S. Cunningham, assistant professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania. This conference examined the growing intersection of nuclear weapons and emerging technology, with a focus on artificial intelligence. The discussion brought together experts from academia, think tanks, and the private sector to explore multilateral opportunities and challenges at the intersection of these rapidly evolving technologies, and possibilities for cooperation between Beijing and Washington.

Horowitz emphasized the importance of this topic in this critical moment, “Before Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meet next week in Washington, D.C., where artificial intelligence will be a topic for discussion, Perry World House brought together some of the world’s leading experts to discuss how countries around the world, including the United States and China, could potentially cooperate on AI and nuclear policy.”

Participants examined potential areas of agreement between the United States and China, as well as issues likely to remain sources of disagreement, such as China’s distrust of new arms-control processes. Panelists considered the current state of arms control, with participants broadly agreeing that the weakened post-Cold War arms-control architecture is inadequate to deal with nuclear risks in the current strategic environment.

Cunningham highlighted one of the project’s goals, “We want to develop ideas for agreements at the intersection of AI and nuclear issues that could gain traction in both Beijing and Washington, as well as among a broader set of countries.”

The conference also explored emerging technology risks and the challenges of assessing them as AI systems become increasingly capable. Participants discussed recent concerns surrounding AI incidents related to spoofing and model breakouts and how these incidents affect the feasibility of risk reduction.

Across the day’s conversations, participants considered how the United States and China can manage emerging risks, where cooperation may be possible, and where strategic competition will continue to constrain efforts to establish new guardrails around AI and nuclear weapons.

PWH’s project on Confidence Building Measures to Reduce Uncertainty in the Future Nuclear Landscape: U.S.-China Competition and Global Risk from Emerging Technologies is generously supported by a grant from Consortium to Reduce Nuclear Dangers, funded by Pax Sapiens and Longview philanthropy.