International digital rights organization founded in 2009. Annual revenue approximately \$15M (as of 2025). Led by Executive Director Alejandro Mayoral Banos (succeeded Brett Solomon who served 2009-2024). AI governance work rooted in human rights law. Led coalition of 110+ civil society organizations in EU AI Act advocacy on transparency safeguards. Research covers LLM privacy risks and surveillance of migrants. Co-Executive Director Amba Kak (of AI Now Institute) was named TIME 100 Most Influential in AI (2024). Primary intervention types: advocacy, policy, digital rights.
Other Data
Publications
3 entries
Title
PublicationType
Authors
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IsFlagship
KeepItOn Report 2024
report
Access Now
https://www.accessnow.org/campaign/keepiton/
2025
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KeepItOn Report 2023: Who Has the Kill Switch?
report
Access Now
https://www.accessnow.org/campaign/keepiton/
2024-03
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Artificial Genocidal Intelligence: How AI Can Facilitate Mass Atrocities
AI Surveillance and Regime Durability ModelAnalysisAI Surveillance and Regime Durability ModelUsing historical regime collapse data (military regimes: 9 years, single-party: 30 years) and evidence from 80+ countries adopting surveillance technology, this model estimates AI-enabled authorita...Quality: 64/100Authoritarian Tools Diffusion ModelAnalysisAuthoritarian Tools Diffusion ModelThis model analyzes how AI surveillance technologies diffuse to authoritarian regimes through commercial sales, development assistance, joint ventures, reverse engineering, and illicit acquisition....Quality: 62/100Surveillance Chilling Effects ModelAnalysisSurveillance Chilling Effects ModelQuantifies how AI surveillance reduces freedom of expression through self-censorship mechanisms, estimating 50-70% reduction in dissent within months and 80-95% within 1-2 years in comprehensive su...Quality: 54/100
Policy
Voluntary AI Safety CommitmentsPolicyVoluntary AI Safety CommitmentsComprehensive empirical analysis of voluntary AI safety commitments showing 53% mean compliance rate across 30 indicators (ranging from 13% for Apple to 83% for OpenAI), with strongest adoption in ...Quality: 91/100China AI Regulatory FrameworkPolicyChina AI Regulatory FrameworkComprehensive analysis of China's AI regulatory framework covering 5+ major regulations affecting 50,000+ companies, with enforcement focusing on content control and social stability rather than ca...Quality: 57/100
Organizations
AlgorithmWatchOrganizationAlgorithmWatchNonprofit research and advocacy organization focused on algorithmic accountability, founded in 2017. Also has a Zurich office. Co-founded and led by Executive Director Matthias Spielkamp. Conducts ...American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)OrganizationAmerican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)Nonprofit civil liberties organization founded in 1920, with approximately 1,400 staff nationally. ACLU Foundation revenue approximately $307 million (FY 2024-2025); combined with 501(c)(4) entity,...Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)OrganizationElectronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)Digital rights nonprofit founded in July 1990 by John Gilmore, John Perry Barlow, and Mitch Kapor. Approximately 100 staff (lawyers, activists, technologists). Budget approximately $24 million (202...US AI Safety InstituteOrganizationUS AI Safety InstituteThe US AI Safety Institute (AISI), established November 2023 within NIST with $10M budget (FY2025 request $82.7M), conducted pre-deployment evaluations of frontier models through MOUs with OpenAI a...Quality: 91/100Center for Democracy and TechnologyOrganizationCenter for Democracy and TechnologyCDT is one of the oldest and most established digital rights organizations engaging on AI policy, founded in 1994. Its AI Governance Lab focuses on algorithmic accountability, automated decision-ma...Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)OrganizationElectronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)Independent nonprofit research center focused on privacy and civil liberties, founded in 1994. Led by Alan Butler (Executive Director and President, since 2020). 97% Charity Navigator score. Runs a...
Risks
AI Mass SurveillanceRiskAI Mass SurveillanceComprehensive analysis of AI-enabled mass surveillance documenting deployment in 97 of 179 countries, with detailed evidence of China's 600M cameras and Xinjiang detention of 1-1.8M Uyghurs. NIST s...Quality: 64/100AI-Enabled Authoritarian TakeoverRiskAI-Enabled Authoritarian TakeoverComprehensive analysis documenting how 72% of global population (5.7 billion) now lives under autocracy with AI surveillance deployed in 80+ countries, showing 15 consecutive years of declining int...Quality: 61/100AI Surveillance and US Democratic ErosionRiskAI Surveillance and US Democratic ErosionAnalysis of how data centralization, oversight dismantlement, and AI capability acquisition by the US government create near-term threats to democratic processes. Documents the Anthropic-Pentagon s...Quality: 55/100
Historical
Mainstream EraHistoricalMainstream EraComprehensive timeline of AI safety's transition from niche to mainstream (2020-present), documenting ChatGPT's unprecedented growth (100M users in 2 months), the OpenAI governance crisis, and firs...Quality: 42/100Anthropic-Pentagon Standoff (2026)EventAnthropic-Pentagon Standoff (2026)Comprehensive analysis of the February 2026 confrontation between Anthropic and the US government. Triggered when Claude AI was used in the January 2026 Venezuela raid via Palantir, Anthropic refus...Quality: 70/100International AI Safety Summit SeriesEventInternational AI Safety Summit SeriesThree international AI safety summits (2023-2025) achieved first formal recognition of catastrophic AI risks from 28+ countries, established 10+ AI Safety Institutes with $100-400M combined budgets...Quality: 63/100
Key Debates
AI Governance and PolicyCruxAI Governance and PolicyComprehensive analysis of AI governance mechanisms estimating 30-50% probability of meaningful regulation by 2027 and 5-25% x-risk reduction potential through coordinated international approaches. ...Quality: 66/100
Concepts
Compute GovernanceConceptCompute GovernanceThis is a comprehensive overview of U.S. AI chip export controls policy, documenting the evolution from blanket restrictions to case-by-case licensing while highlighting significant enforcement cha...Quality: 58/100