The Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford has partnered with the Aspen Global Leadership Network (AGLN), a programme of the Aspen Institute, to launch the Technology Leaders Initiative, a new collaboration aimed at challenging senior technology leaders to think beyond innovation, to reckon with power, responsibility, and the future they are helping to build.
As societies acknowledge the far-reaching implications of AI and its future impact, this partnership responds to a pressing question: What kind of leadership does this digital era require?
Bringing together Oxford’s 900+ years of academic excellence, and world-leading research in ethics and AI with Aspen’s 75-year track record of convening global changemakers, the initiative will begin with a flagship seminar hosted in Oxford in spring 2026. The initiative will gather twenty influential leaders, from policy shapers to industry pioneers, for an intensive programme of deep reflection, interdisciplinary dialogue, and peer exchange on technology’s role in shaping humanity’s future.
Powered by Partnership: The Technology Leaders Initiative was founded by a coalition of AGLN Fellows and is enabled by the partnership of Aspen Digital, a program of the Aspen Institute. The initiative also launches with support from two founding partners: Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, a research-focused university in Abu Dhabi, and the first dedicated entirely to the advancement of science through AI, and the Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford, which brings together leading philosophers and humanities experts with technical developers and users of AI across academia, business, and government.
The seminar will serve as a foundation for the Technology Leaders Initiative (TLI), a two-year programme for senior leaders working at the forefront of the global technology landscape. Inspired by the Institute’s acclaimed Henry Crown Fellowship, TLI will bring together a cohort of twenty Fellows for four seminars held across key technology centres worldwide. Participation is by nomination only, with Fellows selected for their commitment to long-view leadership and potential to drive positive change.
Dr Caroline Green, Director of Research at the Institute for Ethics in AI, said: “As AI continues to reshape our societies, there is an urgent need to equip senior leaders with the frameworks and ethical grounding to make values-based decisions. By joining forces with the Aspen Institute’s Aspen Global Leadership Network, we are creating space for robust dialogue, cross-sector connection, and the kind of principled leadership this moment demands.”
Throughout the programme, participants will be challenged to move beyond conventional metrics of success and consider their deeper responsibilities as stewards of the digital age. The aim is to foster courageous, values-based leadership that reckons not just with innovation, but with power, accountability, and the kind of future we are collectively building.
Dar Vanderbeck, Vice President, Aspen Global Leadership Network, said: "We are excited to partner with the Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford to build networks that ignite humanistic leadership across the technology landscape, giving senior leaders the protected space to wrestle with the deep ethical questions of our time and turn insight into meaningful action."
The collaboration was announced at the 2025 Resnick Aspen Action Forum (22–25 July), where both organisations participated in a roundtable on the future of technology leadership in AI.