Many policymakers and industry pundits have read Arthur Herman’s Freedom’s Forge with the wrong lesson in mind. For those unfamiliar, the synopsis is simple: in 1940, the United States mobilised its industrial base to mass-produce …
Executive director Justin Bassi’s foreword for ASPI’s The Sydney Dialogue 2025, being held on 4 and 5 December. Technology is one of the most powerful forces shaping our world. It can empower societies or …
The signals from Washington on critical minerals are no longer ambiguous; they are decisive, strategic and aligned with Australia’s long-term interests. The issue is whether Canberra and industry can convert this momentum into concrete projects …
Artificial intelligence is moving faster than any governance, policy or organisational system built to contain it. For Australia’s national-security community, this is a strategic inflection point. AI is shifting from decision-support to decision-shaping, and the …
The five-year economic plan that the Chinese government issued in late October made clear that industrial investment and indigenous innovation will remain the centrepiece of the country’s strategic agenda. That’s a problem for China, because …
In modern operations against near-peer adversaries, time is a decisive variable. The side that can observe, orient, decide and act fastest, and with confidence, wins the initiative. Artificial intelligence is changing that calculus. Built on …
The Vietnam War has left deep social and political scars on the US psyche that still ache today. Pierre Asselin broadens our understanding through his recent book, Vietnam’s American War: A New History, which draws …
Northern Australia is primed for growth. Businesses and communities are stepping up, investing in new capabilities and pursuing opportunities in such sectors as energy, defence, agriculture, aviation and advanced manufacturing. Yet, ambitious efforts are hampered …
Amid delays and cost blowouts in Defence, the Australian government on 1 December announced a sweeping overhaul of Defence procurement with the creation of a Defence Delivery Agency (DDA). This will occur from the merger …
The deep strike calculus was already changing for all the world’s leading military powers when, back in August, Ukraine dramatically illustrated the shifting balance of power by revealing a powerful and inexpensive new cruise missile, …
When governments talk about deterrence, they usually mean doctrine, platforms and weapons. Yet modern power rests equally on the infrastructure that sustains a nation under stress. The capacity to keep networks online, data protected and …
‘AI safety’ has become a buzz-phrase in Silicon Valley, where tech companies use it to refer to artificial intelligence systems that reflect human values and protect human well-being. AI chatbots that encourage a person to …
Australia lacks secure, onshore computing power capable of training defence algorithms, running classified simulations or supporting the advanced capability agenda under the AUKUS partnership. Addressing this shortfall requires the government and industry to move decisively …
Rumours suggest another Chinese naval task group may be heading towards Australia. While such a deployment poses no direct threat, and warships are entitled under international law to operate in international waters, it inevitably recalls …
ASPI’s Critical Technology Tracker now covers global research efforts into 74 technologies, giving policymakers, industry and partners the clearest, most current picture of the tech race for strategic advantage. This expanded scope adds 10 technologies …
Australia and the European Union have established an impressive web of agreements and frameworks over the past two years to strengthen critical-minerals cooperation. Yet the ultimate test will be whether these commitments can deliver the …
Chinese state media and diplomatic social media accounts intensified efforts to erode Japan’s standing as an Indo-Pacific defence and security partner in 2025, research by Japan Nexus Intelligence and ASPI shows. Whereas earlier campaigns relied …
A tanker sprinting against the clock to beat a cyclone shouldn’t be a national-security storyline—but last week it became one. As Tropical Cyclone Fina tracked toward the Top End, port authorities expedited the arrival of …
Although it has gained momentum over the past several years, Europe’s Indo-Pacific pivot risks stalling unless it overcomes internal fragmentation, manages strategic distractions and develops a coherent approach. Europe’s engagement in the region matters deeply, …
Australia’s strategic outlook shifted decisively when Japan announced this month that a conflict over Taiwan could constitute a threat to Japanese national survival. That statement, unprecedented in Japan’s postwar history, alters the prospective structure of …