Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), typically accessed through smartphones and headset devices, allow users to access a shared virtual environment, often referred to as a metaverse. While major companies make multibillion dollar bets on the metaverse, regulation and governance structures are still underdeveloped. In this technology primer, we dive into the technology, use cases, governance, and public purpose considerations of AR and VR for the Metaverse.

Artificial intelligence (AI), and specifically machine learning (ML), is becoming increasingly prominent in the day-to-day lives of most people through commercial ready products, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT. In this technology primer, we dive into the technology, use cases, governance, and public purpose considerations of AI and ML. 

The use of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok is increasingly widespread, currently amounting to billions of users worldwide. Social media companies deploy proprietary recommendation algorithms to automate the selection, ranking, and presentation of content on the platform’s “feed” or recommended content section, every time a user opens or refreshes the site or app. However, social media recommendation algorithms have a range of privacy, security, information quality, and psychological concerns for users. 

A successful approach to the regulation of social media recommendation algorithms will require a combination of government regulation, self governance, and external oversight to facilitate value alignment across these diverse actors and tackle the various challenges associated with this technology. This publication explores the technical components of social media recommendation systems, as well as their public purpose considerations. 

China and Russia recently issued a joint announcement that they planned to construct an International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) on the moon or in lunar orbit to carry out “multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities." We asked several Harvard Kennedy School and Belfer Center experts and specialists in space for their thoughts on this proposed collaboration.  

What impact could this collaboration have on the United States, Washington's relationships with China and Russia, and on international security?