Helen Toner Named Interim Executive Director | Center for Security and Emerging Technology

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 Helen Toner Named Interim Executive Director

 Visionary leader in technology policy to guide CSET’s next chapter at the forefront of AI and national security research

 
 
 
 August 26, 2025 
 
 The Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown University has appointed Helen Toner as Interim Executive Director effective September 2, 2025.

 
 

 

 
 
 
 
 The Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown University has appointed Helen Toner as Interim Executive Director effective September 2, 2025. Named to TIME magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in AI in 2024, Toner brings deep expertise at the intersection of emerging technology, international security, and public policy, and has been a driving force in shaping CSET’s strategy and research agenda since its founding in 2019.

 Toner succeeds outgoing Executive Director Dewey Murdick, whose leadership has positioned CSET as a trusted and recognized voice in technology policy and national security.

 “Helen has been instrumental in building CSET from the ground up,” said Joel S. Hellman, Dean of the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. “Under her guidance, CSET will continue to cut through the noise, conducting essential research that provides leaders with the data and analysis they need to make good AI policy.”

 Currently serving as CSET’s Director of Strategy and Foundational Research Grants, Toner helped define the Center’s long-term priorities and led a multimillion dollar technical grantmaking function. She is widely regarded as an expert on the national security implications of AI and machine learning in both China and the United States, and has provided insights to leading media outlets, testified before multiple Congressional committees, and advised cabinet officials and other senior policymakers.

 “I’m honored to step into this role at such a pivotal moment for AI and other emerging technologies,” said Toner. “With policymakers navigating such a rapidly shifting technology landscape, CSET’s mission — to deliver nonpartisan, evidence-based analysis — is more important than ever.”

 Toner holds an M.A. in Security Studies from Georgetown University, as well as a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering and a Diploma in Languages from the University of Melbourne.

 About CSET 
A policy research organization within Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, The Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) provides decision-makers with data-driven analysis on the security implications of emerging technologies. CSET is currently focusing on the effects of progress in artificial intelligence (AI), advanced computing, and biotechnology.