Institute Of National Security

The Vanderbilt University Institute of National Security has been awarded a $2.5 million, two-year grant from the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation to support the Institute’s Wicked Problems Lab and its expanding research portfolio, including the development of the Synthetic Information Filtering Testbed (SIFT)—a first-of-its-kind research initiative designed… Read More

On Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, Sir Richard Moore, former Chief of the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and former UK Ambassador to Turkey, joined Paul M. Nakasone, founder of the Vanderbilt Institute of National Security, for a wide-ranging conversation on intelligence, diplomacy, and leadership. Held in Langford Auditorium ahead of… Read More

Michael “Erik” Kurilla, retired United States Army General and former Commander of U.S. Central Command, will deliver a keynote address at the 2026 Asness Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats, hosted by Vanderbilt University’s Institute of National Security. The Summit will take place April 23–24,… Read More

Character and leadership took center stage at Vanderbilt University as retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal joined retired Gen. Paul Nakasone, founding director of the Institute of National Security, for the institute’s speaker series Monday evening. Vanderbilt welcomed McChrystal to a packed Langford Auditorium for a fireside chat hosted by the… Read More

Artificial intelligence is no longer just a tool—it’s a strategic imperative, according to Lakshmi Raman, director of the CIA’s Office of Artificial Intelligence. During her keynote address and fireside chat at Vanderbilt’s fourth annual Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats, Raman described how the CIA is adapting to… Read More

Drawing on his military background and role as chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, U.S. Rep. Mark Green offered a frank assessment of artificial intelligence and its implications for the future of national security during the 2025 Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats. … Read More

Over two days of expert panels at the 2025 Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats, one theme emerged as the clearest unifying thread: As AI systems become more powerful and more autonomous, the role of human judgment has never been more crucial.   Across discussions on… Read More

The race to control advanced semiconductor technology will shape the future of national security, economic competitiveness and geopolitical influence, according to historian and policy expert Chris Miller, who delivered a keynote address at Vanderbilt University during the fourth annual Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats.  Miller,… Read More

Chancellor Daniel Diermeier opened the fourth annual Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats with a call for bold, collaborative leadership to meet the unprecedented challenges posed by artificial intelligence.  “We are living through a moment of extraordinary promise—and extraordinary peril,” Diermeier said. “That… Read More