News & Insights
Cyber Effects in Warfare: Categorizing the Where, What, and Why
For decades, military practitioners and academics have come up with theories, evidence, and examples that indicate that offensive cyber operations might revolutionize modern warfare. Others have made an equally impressive…
‘Unit X’ Review: Taking Tech Into Battle
When Raj Shah was an F-16 pilot in 2006 flying missions along the Iraq-Iran border, he discovered that the multimillion-dollar fighter’s navigation system was so out of date that it…
BENS Eisenhower Award Recipient Alex Karp Has Money and Power. So What Does He Want?
Alex Karp never learned to drive. “I was too poor,” he said. “And then I was too rich.” In fact, Mr. Karp, a co-founder and the C.E.O. of Palantir Technologies,…
The US Navy’s warship production is in its worst state in 25 years. What’s behind it?
The Navy’s ability to build lower-cost warships that can shoot down Houthi rebel missiles in the Red Sea depends in part on a 25-year-old laborer who previously made parts for…
Beyond Fusion: Preparing for systems rivalry with China
In 2007, when former Chinese leader Hu Jintao urged China to pursue “Military-Civil Fusion with Chinese characteristics,” few in the United States paid attention, much less anticipated the dilemma that this emerging…
How Everything Became National Security
In American politics, labeling something a matter of “national security” automatically elevates its importance. In the language of foreign policy observers, national security questions, such as regulating weapons of mass…
Embrace AI to maintain global talent pool for US innovation, security
The U.S. faces significant challenges, including climate change, cyber threats, resource scarcity, and global health crises. To address these and many other issues, the nation has long attracted international scientists…
“Shadow Reserves”: China’s key to parry U.S. financial sanctions
In the ongoing U.S.-Chinese financial war, Beijing has focused on insulating China’s strategic trade from dollar-based financial sanctions. This objective has animated the growing push for China-Saudi renminbi settlement. It has also…
