Mission Log

National AI strategies increasingly emphasize domestic computing capacity, data governance and technological independence. The economic choices extend across the AI supply chain, from infrastructure and model development to public procurement and institutional capability. AI sovereignty has become a central objective of national technology strategies. Governments are investing in computing infrastructure, supporting domestic AI companies and examining their dependence on fore

Large language models, smaller models and specialized AI architectures offer different combinations of capability, cost and control. Choosing between them is becoming an important investment decision for organizations and governments. The rapid development of frontier AI models has encouraged organizations to explore applications across research, administration, knowledge management and decision support. Commercial models provide access to sophisticated capabilities without r

The AI industry continues to invest billions in larger models and computing infrastructure. At the same time, smaller models are becoming more capable, cheaper to operate and increasingly practical for specialized applications. These developments raise questions about where AI investment creates value, and who ultimately benefits from it. In 2024, researchers at Epoch AI estimated that the hardware and energy costs of training frontier AI models had been growing by approximat

AI can accelerate grantmaking, due diligence, and portfolio management. Keeping those systems reliable requires more than deployment. Learn how MLOps helps donor organizations monitor, maintain, and improve AI over time.

A few weeks ago, the Vatican entered the AI conversation in a serious and surprising, nuanced way. Pope Leo XIV released Magnificat Humanitatis, an encyclical focused on artificial intelligence, human dignity, labor, and society. The timing carried symbolic weight: it landed exactly 135 years after Rerum Novarum, the Church's response to the Industrial Revolution. Our guest this episode has spent more than 20 years at the UN driving social change, and she is asking the questi

Podcast Episode Our guest for this episode (and co-author of this article), Alice Liu, responsible AI and digital health consultant, joined us to answer a question that sounds simple and isn't: does AI governance have to start from scratch? Her answer draws on 2,500 years of medical ethics infrastructure that is already built, already tested, and offers potential approaches for the people designing AI systems today. Clinical AI is already embedded in everyday care: flagging p

ISM Interprétariat came to us with a problem that many mission-driven organisations recognise: their clients were finding workarounds. And those workarounds were creating risk. ISM is one of France's leading professional interpretation services, with around 200 highly trained interpreters working across healthcare, social services, and humanitarian contexts. Their work is excellent. But the need in the market is vast — and when clients couldn't get an interpreter quickly enou

A response to the CAIDP Index 2026, and the question every major framework has left unasked. The Center for AI and Digital Policy released its 2026 Index this week. The findings are worth taking seriously. Forty-five countries now support the international AI Treaty. New AI laws passed in China, Japan, South Korea, Peru, and Vietnam. The UN established a scientific panel on AI with global participation. European countries are moving forward with the EU AI Act. The CAIDP's co