Military and national security

Janet Egan

senior fellow and deputy director of CNAS's Technology and National Security Program

4 records

Records

AI capabilities are advancing faster than our ability to reliably control them. As models become more capable, future failures will carry far greater consequences. But reliably aligning AI systems with human intentions remains an open scientific problem. Washington should take immediate steps to ensure these risks are managed and AI systems remain under control.

Janet Egan

senior fellow and deputy director of CNAS's Technology and National Security Program

In a July 2026 CNAS Insights commentary co-written with Ruby Scanlon, Janet Egan wrote that AI capabilities are advancing faster than our ability to reliably control them, that reliably aligning AI systems with human intentions remains an open scientific problem, and that Washington should take immediate steps to ensure AI systems remain under control.

Deputy director and senior fellow of the Technology and National Security Program, Center for a New American SecurityPublished July 27, 2026 · date of remarks not establishedCNAS Insights

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Surrounding words

This incident won’t be the last of its kind. AI capabilities are advancing faster than our ability to reliably control them. As models become more capable, future failures will carry far greater consequences. But reliably aligning AI systems with human intentions remains an open scientific problem. Washington should take immediate steps to ensure these risks are managed and AI systems remain under control. What Actually Happened The details of how the hack took place reveal sophisticated, multistep reasoning and execution, all self-directed by the models.

What this quote does not say

The passage is the article's thesis paragraph, written in the authors' collective voice ('our ability'), not a personal first-person statement.
The dated CNAS page has no visible version identifier or changelog.

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The United States cannot afford policies built solely on speculative fears. Yet in the face of real and rapid progress in national security–relevant capabilities, neither can it risk allowing an AI-driven disaster or a regulatory vacuum to derail technological progress.

Janet Egan

senior fellow and deputy director of CNAS's Technology and National Security Program

In a November 2025 CNAS report she co-authored, Janet Egan wrote that the United States cannot afford policies built solely on speculative fears, but that neither can it risk allowing an AI-driven disaster or a regulatory vacuum to derail technological progress.

Senior Fellow and Deputy Director, Technology and National Security ProgramPublished November 20, 2025 · date of remarks not establishedPrepared, Not Paralyzed: Managing AI Risks to Drive American Leadership

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Surrounding words

Meanwhile, the private sector lacks both the national security expertise and the commercial incentives to manage these risks to the national interest. The United States cannot afford policies built solely on speculative fears. Yet in the face of real and rapid progress in national security–relevant capabilities, neither can it risk allowing an AI-driven disaster or a regulatory vacuum to derail technological progress. While much of the policy debate rightly focuses on innovation and accelerating adoption, this report concentrates on a less developed but equally vital counterpart: managing the risks that could undermine those ambitions without stifling

What this quote does not say

The report has three authors (Janet Egan, first-listed, with Spencer Michaels and Caleb Withers), so the public page does not establish which co-author drafted this passage.
This is a both-sides framing of Egan's policy position; it is not a retraction and it is not an individual probability estimate.

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Quote matched character-for-character against the captured page.

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To address security and safety risks stemming from highly capable artificial intelligence (AI) models, we propose that the US government should ensure compute providers implement Know-Your-Customer (KYC) schemes.

Janet Egan

senior fellow and deputy director of CNAS's Technology and National Security Program

In an October 2023 arXiv preprint co-authored with Lennart Heim, Janet Egan proposed that the US government should ensure compute providers implement Know-Your-Customer schemes to address security and safety risks stemming from highly capable AI models.

Co-author, arXiv:2310.13625 (with Lennart Heim)Published October 20, 2023 · date of remarks not establishedarXiv:2310.13625v1

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Science > Computers and Society Title:Oversight for Frontier AI through a Know-Your-Customer Scheme for Compute Providers View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract: To address security and safety risks stemming from highly capable artificial intelligence (AI) models, we propose that the US government should ensure compute providers implement Know-Your-Customer (KYC) schemes. Compute - the computational power and infrastructure required to train and run these AI models - is emerging as a node for oversight.

What this quote does not say

The paper has two authors (Egan and Lennart Heim), so Egan's sentence-level contribution cannot be isolated; the proposal is stated as 'we propose'.

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Quote matched character-for-character against the captured page.

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Statements they signed

FROM THE SIGNED STATEMENT

The International AI Safety Report 2026 confirms that general-purpose AI systems can now provide expert-level guidance on biological and chemical weapons development, including detailed laboratory instructions.

Signed statement: “Australian AI–Biosecurity Letter” (Australians for AI Safety)

Janet Egan

senior fellow and deputy director of CNAS's Technology and National Security Program

Signed as part of a group statement. Not spoken.

Janet Egan signed the “Australian AI–Biosecurity Letter,” which asked Australia to require safety screening for imported synthetic nucleic acids to reduce AI-enabled biosecurity risks.

Senior Fellow and Deputy DirectorDate not establishedAustralian AI–Biosecurity Letter

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Surrounding words

Brendan Walker-MunroPhD Southern Cross University Associate Professor Managing Editor of Routledge International Handbook of Research Security Janet Egan Center for a New American Security Senior Fellow and Deputy Director Ms Kate ChaneyMP Federal Member for Curtin Dr Lotti Tajouri Bond University and Murdoch University Associate Professor Dr.

What this quote does not say

Janet Egan appears once under “Individual Signatories”; the roster gives “Center for a New American Security” followed by the role wording “Senior Fellow and Deputy Director.”
The page says the letter was sent 4 May 2026, but does not date Egan's signature; roster observed 2026-08-19; signing date unknown.

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The organiser's own roster lists this person as a signer.

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