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Tech Policy Institute Collaborates with Bitcoin Policy Institute and Fedi To Launch New 2-Year Study

The Bitcoin Policy Institute (BPI), Cornell Tech Policy Institute (TPI), and Fedi are leading a new two-year, integrated study on American attitudes toward financial privacy. This project is the first to systematically examine how public policy and enforcement shape both user behavior and developer decisions around privacy technologies.
As Director Sarah Kreps notes, the study will move debates about privacy “from the abstract” to evidence by tracking how policy signals affect public behavior and developer choices over time. The research combines nationally representative surveys of U.S. users with in-depth interviews of developers working on Bitcoin and related open-source systems, with four semi-annual reports beginning in April 2026 and running through 2027.

Drone Vulnerabilities and the Threat of Directed Energy Weapons to Drone Survival

On Friday, January 23rd, Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute Director’s Fellow John Miller gave a seminar on how drone warfare has evolved over the past decade and what it means for future conflict. He traced the shift from expensive, high‑end systems like the Predator and Reaper to cheap, mass‑produced DJI‑scale platforms now central to the war in Ukraine, where entire units are dedicated to drone production, modification, and employment. John highlighted how existing taxonomies of drones fail to capture operational realities and explained his current research on drone fault hierarchies and vulnerabilities, including GPS spoofing, communications jamming, and emerging directed‑energy threats. He noted that while many electronic warfare risks can be mitigated through advanced signal processing and software, high‑energy lasers pose a growing challenge as more states develop scalable directed‑energy systems. His ongoing work explores low‑cost sensing solutions that could help drones detect laser targeting in milliseconds and enable swarm‑level evasive behaviors, with implications for both U.S. doctrine and adversary counter‑drone strategies.

Cornell Tech Policy Institute Hosts Senior Director at Cisco 

Eric WengerEric Wenger (‘90) – Senior Director for Cyber and Emerging Tech Policy at Cisco, addressed more than 250 students.

Drawing on his experience at Cisco, Microsoft, the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, and the New York State Attorney General’s office, Eric discussed why technology policy is now central to national security and economic competitiveness. He highlighted how the character of cybersecurity is changing from traditional network defense to securing AI, cloud, and critical infrastructure. He also outlined emerging challenges that will define the next decade of policy and practice. Students engaged with thoughtful questions on topics ranging from public–private collaboration to the future cyber workforce. We are grateful for Eric’s time and insights, and look forward to welcoming him back to campus in the future.

This summer, BTPI Junior Fellow Cynthia Tan travelled to the United Kingdom as a Visiting Scholar at Oxford’s Department of Sociology. Over the course of nine weeks, she developed a social network analysis mapping how law enforcement...

The Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute (BTPI) has released a new report urging federal action to advance biomining, the use of microorganisms to extract metals from ores and waste streams. The study highlights that critical minerals such...

From August 16th-18th, Joshua Greenberg (BTPI Fellow and PhD Student in Information Science) attended a wargaming conference hosted by the Carnegie-Maxwell Policy Planning Lab at Syracuse University’s Minnowbrook Lodge in the...

What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic—especially as climate change, nuclear deterrence, duel use technologies, and renewed great power competition converge to reshape the region’s strategic importance. In response to...

A Cornell-led assessment of vulnerabilities in the semiconductor supply chain and how to mitigate them is on hold after receiving a stop-work...

On Thursday May 1st, BTPI welcomed Dr Anatoly Levshin, (Harvard University), for two events to discuss his research on artificial intelligence and geopolitics. Levshin explored how AI is likely to catalyze systemic transformations,...

Artificial Intelligence and U.S. Military Cadets’ Attitudes About Future War Paul Lushenko and Robert Sparrow Research often assumes that junior military personnel will trust AI during future wars, and at higher levels than senior...

The Brooks Tech Policy Institute (BTPI) had the pleasure of hosting officers from the US Army War College, as part of the Eisenhower Series. The series was set up to encourage civil-military discussion during the Vietnam War and today acts...

Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute is excited to announce a new grant opportunity to support Cornell students and faculty conducting research at the intersection of technology, cybersecurity, and public policy. We invite proposals from...

Defending America’s Skies: Public Support for Homeland Counter-Drone Operations   Brooks Tech Policy Institute’s Non-Resident Senior Fellow Dr. Paul Lushenko and Dr. Jennifer Spindel of the University of New Hampshire in a new...