| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Bipartisan nonprofit national-security research (think tank) |
| HQ | Washington, D.C. |
| Focus | National security and defense policy; military AI, autonomous systems, US-China technology competition, compute and export controls |
| Relevant programs | AI Security and Stability project; Artificial Intelligence and Global Security Initiative; Technology and National Security program |
The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) is a bipartisan Washington, D.C. think tank focused on national-security and defense policy. Its technology research spans military applications of AI, autonomous weapons, the US-China AI competition, and the compute and export-control levers tied to them.
Programs and activities
CNAS conducts its AI work through several programs. The AI Security and Stability project states its aim as "to inform government decision-making on the most critical AI policy issues that will affect the future of AI" (Source: cnas.org). The Artificial Intelligence and Global Security Initiative examines how the AI revolution could shift global power (Source: cnas.org). The broader Technology and National Security program conducts policy research aimed at securing and extending US AI leadership, including identifying bottlenecks to continued progress (Source: cnas.org).
CNAS analysis appears in the AI-and-national-security debate on export controls, compute governance, and defense-adoption questions, including those formalized in NSPM-11 — Artificial Intelligence in the National Security Enterprise (Trump, June 5, 2026). It is one of several Washington institutions, alongside Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), cited on these topics.
Public-vs-private AI investment gap finding
CNAS is the source of a public-vs-private AI investment gap figure cited in Dominance by Understanding (Frazier-Rozenshtein policy frame) and Dominating AI Requires Understanding AI (Frazier + Rozenshtein, Lawfare, May 12 2026): "For every dollar allocated to NAIRR, the private sector is investing roughly $23,000 in AI." The figure is used to argue that US public-sector AI capacity lags private investment, a point connected to debates on state capacity, the National Security Commission on AI funding recommendations, and Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) analysis.
Relationships
- related: Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI), Dominance by Understanding (Frazier-Rozenshtein policy frame), Defense / Military — AI Deployment, DOD — Department of Defense (AI Deployer), Compute Governance
- supports: analysis cited in Dominating AI Requires Understanding AI (Frazier + Rozenshtein, Lawfare, May 12 2026)