It was a big week for the OP team, kicking off what’s going to be an even bigger summer. Charles Oppenheimer spoke at the Forum on Climate Investing in New Jersey — huge thanks to awesome co-hosts Doris Duke Foundation for such an energizing (pun intended!) gathering. The event featured much positive buzz about nuclear power and inspired lots of interest in learning more. Many thanks also to Ray A. Rothrock — venture capitalist, philanthropist and nuclear engineer — who shared the stage with Charles for a lively conversation on the comeback of nuclear energy.
Meanwhile, in San Francisco
The Oppenheimer Project and the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies held a workshop, Mitigating WMD Risks in an Era of Artificial Intelligence, on June 5th at the Mechanic’s Institute in San Francisco. The workshop brought together luminaries from academia, philanthropy, and the private sector to explore challenges and opportunities at the nexus of artificial intelligence and nuclear technologies.
Sessions covered the growing urgency of policy reform to reduce the risks associated with integrating AI into nuclear weapons command, control and communications; nuclear weapons and philanthropic fundraising challenges, and the implications for nonproliferation policy as a result of nuclear power’s expansion around the world.
Also on June 5th, we held a kickoff dinner for Oppenheimer’s Impossible Labs, a new initiative dedicated to building trust, dialogue, and collaboration among China, Russia, and the United States. Inspired by Oppenheimer’s insight that meaningful human connections can bridge seemingly impossible divides, we believe thoughtful dialogue—particularly around frontier technology—can open new pathways for cooperation. The lightly moderated, private Jeffersonian dinner – structured around reflective conversation under the Chatham House Rule – brought together leaders from tech, philanthropy, and diplomacy alongside senior issue experts to discuss the following themes:
- Explore collaboration on frontier technology, including artificial intelligence and beyond, to bridge geopolitical divides;
- Share personal light-bulb moments for unlocking the impossible, and strategies for building trust among unlikely partners;
- Consider unexpected approaches to sustaining informal diplomatic pathways to peace.
More cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency
Finally, as we mentioned last week, our partnership with the IAEA is now out in the world. The partnership agreement, which lasts three years, envisions further participation in each other’s events on nuclear energy, including engagement with the next generation of leaders on peaceful nuclear technologies, with an emphasis on the nexus between nuclear, climate change, Artificial Intelligence and policy. The agreement also foresees collaboration on expanding support and partnerships for the IAEA’s Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Program, which provides scholarships and internship opportunities for women students pursuing master’s degrees in the nuclear field.