Archive

nuclear

Meet the Executive Committee Members, Working Group Co-Chairs, and Working Group Experts Contributing to IST’s AI-NC3 Initiative

Leading academics, technologists, and operators have joined the Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications Initiative to sit on its Executive Committee, chair the four Working Groups, and offer expert guidance as members of the Working Groups.

AI, artificial intelligence, command authority, decision support, early warning, governance, NC3, norms, nuclear, risk reduction

June 1, 2026

The United States’ Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3) Operations

IST's Brandon Cortino and Catherine Murphy co-authored a primer that serves to create a stronger understanding of the systems comprising the U.S. NC3 network, summarize modernization plans, and explore the challenges that emerge in an increasingly uncertain threat environment.

command, communications, control, Department of Defense, deterrence, EDTs, modernization, NC3, nuclear, stability

May 7, 2026

How to End the Iran Crisis

For Foreign Affairs, former European Commission VP Federica Mogherini & IST Senior Fellow Sahil V. Shah examine the trajectory of the Iran-U.S. peace talks, and the future of the nuclear file.

Iran, national security, nuclear, nuclear energy, United States

April 13, 2026

Meet the Andrew Carnegie AI-Nuclear Policy Accelerator Inaugural Cohort

IST introduces the 26 members of the inaugural Andrew Carnegie AI-Nuclear Policy Accelerator cohort, a program that will equip mid-career security practitioners with the tools to confront the intersection between AI and nuclear issues.

AI, announcement, arms control, artificial intelligence, fellows, ICBM, modernization, nuclear, nuclear weapons

April 9, 2026

Crossed Wires and Rising Escalations: IST Hosts Workshop on Reinvigorating Nuclear Crisis Communications

On February 18, 2026, the Institute for Security and Technology’s Nuclear Policy team convened for a workshop and scenario-based exercise titled “Reinvigorating Nuclear Crisis Communications in an Era of Emerging Technologies” with leading diplomats, policy experts, and technologists in Geneva, Switzerland.

arms control, crisis communications, escalation, mesh networks, New START, nuclear, risk reduction

March 9, 2026

New Video Narrated by Rose Gottemoeller Spotlights “CATALINK”: A Critical Blueprint for Secure, Multilateral Crisis Communications

Narrated by Rose Gottemoeller, former NATO Deputy Secretary General and U.S. Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, a new three-minute animated film live today introduces CATALINK. This groundbreaking initiative is a blueprint for a dedicated, last-resort communication system designed to be the ultimate backstop to prevent or cease nuclear war.

arms race, CATALINK, crisis communications, hotlines, mesh network, nuclear, Puck, risk reduction

December 17, 2025

AI and NC3 Initiative Enters Phase 2: Bridging Perspectives on Risks and Opportunities

IST, with support from Longview Philanthropy, is entering phase 2 of our efforts on the integration of artificial intelligence into nuclear command, control, and communications. In its next phase, the AI and NC3 initiative will establish an executive committee and 4 working groups, driving further research on competitive AI dynamics, global perspectives on AI-NC3, AI technical development and trajectories, and AI norms and governance.

AI, artificial intelligence, competitive AI, governance, NC3, norms, nuclear, strategic stability

December 11, 2025

Negotiating Stability: Reflections on CSIS’ Future Arms Control Experts (FACE) Program

IST Senior Associate for Nuclear Policy Brandon Cortino spent the last year as a fellow in the Center for Strategic and International Studies FACE cohort, which aims to train the next generation of arms control negotiators. He shares lessons learned from his study of the 2002 Moscow Treaty signed by Presidents Bush and Putin. “It is clear future treaties must consider the myriad threats posed by poor AI integration into nuclear command, control, and communications, and great powers must find common ground and rally against destabilizing technologies,” he writes.

George W. Bush, hypersonic missile, Moscow Treaty, NC3, New START, nuclear, Russia, treaty, Vladimir Putin

November 18, 2025

The New Nuclear Age: At the Precipice of Armageddon – IST Hosts Book Talk with Author Ankit Panda

IST’s Nuclear Policy team hosted international security expert and author Ankit Panda in Palo Alto to learn more about his latest book unpacking the trilateral nuclear competition between the United States, China, and Russia. IST CEO Philip Reiner sat down for a fireside chat with Ankit, highlighting in their discussion the need to collectively identify political and technical solutions to address the nexus of emerging technologies and the new nuclear age.

AI, and communications, artificial inteligence, China, control, NC3, nuclear, nuclear command, nuclear risk, Russia, United States

November 17, 2025

In the News, Op-ed

Foreign Policy: Trump’s Vagueness Over Nuclear Testing Could Fuel an Arms Race

The delicate balance of nuclear deterrence relies on clarity. But what happens when a major power embraces ambiguity on a core issue like weapons testing? IST Senior Policy Advisor Sahil V. Shah calls for clarification in a new op-ed in Foreign Policy.

arms race, deterrence, nuclear, nuclear weapons, strategic stability, testing

October 31, 2025

AI, NC3, and Strategic Stability: Scenario Exercise

How might the integration of AI into global NC3 systems transform strategic stability and deterrence dynamics? In Washington, D.C. this spring, IST convened more than 60 senior officials, technical experts, and civil society actors for an in-depth analysis of the risks and opportunities of AI in NC3 using this scenario exercise.

adaptive targeting, AI, decision support, nuclear, nuclear command, scenario, strategic warning, TTX

October 16, 2025

October 23, 2025 2:00 pm

Book Talk | The New Nuclear Age: At the Precipice of Armageddon

In a world with increasing nuclear dyads, can emerging technologies make us safer – or are we opening Pandora's Box? Join IST in Palo Alto, CA or virtually for a book talk with Ankit Panda.

AI, China, international security, NC3, nuclear, nuclear dyad, nuclear security, Russia

October 6, 2025

Artificial Intelligence in Nuclear Command, Control & Communications: A Technical Primer

AI has been integral to nuclear weapons systems and operations for decades, but rapidly advancing “novel” models pose unforeseen technical opportunities. For the Institute for Security and Technology’s scenario-driven workshop on the integration of AI into NC3 systems, IST’s Sylvia Mishra and Philip Reiner co-authored a short primer to establish what constitutes 'novel' AI in the context of nuclear weapons decision-making.

AI, artificial intelligence, NC3, nuclear, system of systems

September 10, 2025

Q&A: Separating the hype from reality

Nuclear command, control, and communications systems are often called the “fourth leg” of the U.S. nuclear enterprise. In this month’s edition of the TechnologIST, IST Deputy Director of Nuclear Policy Sylvia Mishra joined us for a Q&A about IST’s recent primer on NC3 systems, drafted for a workshop focused on the integration of AI and NC3.

AI, NC3, nuclear

July 8, 2025

Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3): A Primer on Strategic Warning, Decision Support, and Adaptive Targeting Subsystems

Originally drafted to guide substantive discussions for a scenario-driven workshop hosted by IST in Washington, DC on the risks and opportunities of AI integration in NC3, this primer provides a technical and in-depth overview and analysis of strategic warning, decision support, and adaptive targeting subsystems that comprise the NC3 “system of systems.”

adaptive targeting, decision support, NC3, NC3 architecture, nuclear, strategic warning, system of systems

July 7, 2025

Securing the Signal: Mitigation Strategies to Strengthen Crisis Communication Channels

As global norms are challenged and emerging technologies accelerate, crisis communication systems between nuclear-armed states face urgent new threats. This report identifies four critical scenarios and outlines a matched set of mitigation strategies designed to reinforce the reliability of crisis communications in high-stakes environments.

CATALINK, cold war, crisis communications, electromagnetic pulse, EMP, escalation, miscalculation, nuclear

May 28, 2025