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The head of the FBI, Christopher Wray, is in Palo Alto for a tech security summit.
PALO ALTO, Calif. – The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Christopher Wray, was in Palo Alto on Tuesday, meeting with heads of intelligence agencies from Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
The gathering marks a historic moment as the leaders of security agencies from five allied countries have never been photographed together until now, even though they’ve shared information since World War II. This cooperative group is commonly referred to as “The Five Eyes.”
On Tuesday, the current leaders of these intelligence agencies convened in Palo Alto for the “Emerging Technology and Securing Innovation Security Summit.” The central focus of this summit revolves around technology and its intersection with global security.
David McCuan, chair of Political Science at Sonoma State University, explained the significance of this gathering, citing recent global events with cyberattacks or electronic components preceding significant incidents.
“You think back to what happened in Ukraine… What happened with the horrible attacks in Israel this month. All of those events were often preceded by cyber attacks or had some electronic component,” McCuan said.
In a statement, Ken McCallum, the director of Britain’s intelligence agency, MI5, emphasized the summit’s goals.
“The stakes are incredibly high in emerging technologies,” he said. “Those nations leading the way in areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and synthetic biology will wield the power to shape our collective future. It is crucial for us all to remain vigilant and respond before it’s too late.”
As for what will be discussed?
“How warfare is conducted, what happens on the internet, the speed and depth of what’s happening with crypto, the blurring of lines between states and non-state actors – is a challenge for US security and for the security agencies that are meeting today,” McCuan said.
The summit kicks off with a panel discussion among all five members, hosted by former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the Hoover Institution on the Stanford University campus.
