Betting on America: Winning the Global Tech Race

Laurie E. Locascio, Ph.D. NAE, president and CEO of the American National Standards Institute and former director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, joins Betting on America to make the case that sustaining U.S. standards leadership requires playing the long game. Standards-setting is how governments, industry, and experts agree on common rules, from defining a meter, to determining how a phone connects to Wi-Fi. Standards are increasingly central to the modern economy, and China and other countries are ratcheting up efforts to shape them. Locascio argues that the U.S. government should incentivize companies to pursue long-term standards goals and ensure that the best U.S. technical diplomats have seats at the tables where global standards are set.

What did this year's UN General Assembly reveal about the future of global development? As the development landscape shifts, conversations at UNGA 81 brought renewed attention to how countries are defining their own priorities, the role of technology and investment, and the future of global cooperation.

Please join the CSIS Global Development Department President Enoh T. Ebong and Chief of Staff Hadeil Ali as they reflect on their recent experience at UNGA 81. They discuss shifting development partnerships, emerging commercial markets, and the race for the next UN Secretary-General.

Anne Neuberger, General Partner and Head of Global Affairs at a16z and former Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology, joins Betting on America to make the case that technology leadership is security. She argues that sustaining leadership has become increasingly challenging as acceleration technologies like AI, robotics, quantum, and cyber converge, creating significant upsides for innovation but also downside risks. These technology disruptions will require policymakers, investors, and our alliances to adapt rapidly.

Join us for an episode of Betting on America, featuring a panel discussion on the AI revolution, reindustrialization, and new pathways to Black wealth. The panel was moderated by Joint Center President Dedrick Asante-Muhammad and featured Dr. Nicol Turner Lee of the Brookings Institution, Chanelle Hardy of Google, and Navin Girishankar of CSIS. The panel explored the risks and opportunities presented by AI and America’s reindustrialization, with a focus on how to ensure AI-driven growth becomes a pathway to greater opportunity and wealth creation for all.

Join us for a special episode of Betting on America, featuring the recent CSIS-hosted “International Call to Action for 6G Leadership and Security” with the U.S. Department of Commerce, a leader in advancing secure, trusted, and innovative wireless technologies. Deputy Secretary Paul Dabbar, German Ambassador to the United States Jens Hanefeld, and Assistant Secretary Arielle Roth kicked off the convening, bringing together representatives from 25 governments and industry leaders to explore why 6G will be critical for the AI race, critical infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing — and why the United States cannot build the ecosystem alone.