To help leaders address their most pressing policy challenges Brookings conducts forward-thinking AI-related research and produces actionable recommendations through rigorous, interdisciplinary analysis and insights. Leaders demand creative approaches to research and frontier thinking to stay ahead of the technology curve. This imperative drives a research agenda about AI and its limitations, capabilities, and impacts, even as they remain empirically unverifiable. This poses a critical issue: we cannot govern what we cannot measure. As a result, the technology’s potential benefits — including productivity gains, scientific discovery and improved public services — are substantial but will not be automatically realized. Decisionmakers require policy recommendations anchored in comprehensive, evidence-based research in order to deliver on the potential of truly beneficial AI – at home and around the world.

The Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology (AIET) initiative drives Brookings’ work on AI by conducting rigorous original research, convening strategic discussions, and bolstering collaboration among research centers across the institution. AIET also produces evidence-based analysis to help decision-makers understand how these technologies are reshaping society and to craft policies that maximize benefits while mitigating risks.

The centers listed here—Center for Technology Innovation, Center for Universal Education, Center for Sustainable Development, Africa Growth Initiative, Center for Regulation and Markets, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology and John L. Thornton China Center —are deeply engaged in AI-related research and represent a broader network of Brookings teams working on these issues. AIET strengthens connections among these centers, enabling shared insights and coordinated approaches that inform policies that optimize benefits and responsibly address risks. To discover the full scope of our AI work—including research projects, events, and a complete list of scholars—visit the Brookings Artificial Intelligence webpage.