I worry that we will be unable to control something smarter than ourselves. It is the reason I moved from diplomacy into AI policy, and the problem I have dedicated my career to. 

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I am based in London and work as the Global Director of Policy for the Future of Life Institute (FLI), where I lead teams advising governments on how to navigate increasingly advanced artificial intelligence.

 

Much of my work is diplomatic: I have addressed the expert body working on autonomous weapons at the UN in Geneva, the European Parliament, and the Defence Committee of the German Bundestag. I’ve also spoken about FLI’s work to CNBC, Politico, Fox News, BBC World, Der Spiegel, NOS, NRC Handelsblad, among others.

 

Before joining FLI, I (unsuccessfully) ran for parliament and worked as a diplomat. I spent time in both The Hague and at the Embassy in Iraq, where I helped establish an entrepreneurship program for young Iraqis.

 

I am a former Fulbright Fellow and hold a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford, and a master’s from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

 

You can find an overview of policy work by myself and my colleagues on this page. If you are interested in my takes, do follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my weekly AI Policy Situation Report on the same platform.

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​When I am not working, I enjoy cold-water swims and continuing my lifelong struggle to learn Arabic. If you share my interest in the language, here is some advice I wish I had received before starting out.​

You can reach me through markbrakel [at] proton [dot] me, or on mark [at] futureoflife [dot] org for questions related to FLI. For media enquiries please contact press [at] futureoflife [dot] org.