Katrina Manson’s recently published book explores the dramatic story of the secretive decade-long Pentagon campaign to deliver America into the age of AI warfare In 2017, a small crew gathered in a windowless Pentagon room to put AI at the heart of how America makes war. Led by Drew Cukor, an unyielding Marine Corps colonel driven by the deaths of US troops and the prospect of war with an AI-equipped China, the Project Maven team raced to send AI into combat, igniting controversy and forever changing the US military.

Europe is facing a moment of profound moment of crisis. From Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and shifting transatlantic dynamics to economic stagnation, political fragmentation, and the rise of populism, the foundations of the European project are under strain. In this talk, Timothy Garton Ash will reflect on the nature of Europe’s current crisis, examining whether it represents a temporary convergence of challenges or a deeper structural turning point.

The U.S. Navy remains optimized to deter and defeat a traditional amphibious invasion of Taiwan, while the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is more likely to pursue a slow, layered gray zone campaign to achieve unification without triggering decisive conflict. This mismatch risks leaving the United States prepared for the least likely course of action while vulnerable to the most probable one. Effective deterrence in this environment will require a Navy capable of imposing immediate, scalable, and primarily non-lethal costs across multiple domains.

On behalf of the United Nations Department of Peace Operations and the Department of Politics and International Relations, we invite you to a special guest lecture delivered by United Nations Under-Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix on Thursday, 18 June 2026, 1700-1800 at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. The evening marks the conclusion of the inaugural Peace and Security Fellowship, a collaborative programme delivered by the University of Oxford and the United Nations Department of Peace Operations in May and June.

What are the human skills that set you apart in the age of AI? How can you develop them whilst studying at Oxford and also make a difference to society? Chaired by Oxford's Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education, Freya Johnston.