Hudson Institute Events Podcast

The Trump administration finds itself with an array of foreign policy opportunities thanks to strategic shifts in the Middle East, in large part due to Israel’s efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and eliminate Iran’s proxy network, leading to new leadership in Lebanon and Syria. But other actors, including China and Russia, also seek to capitalize on the changing landscape in the region to undermine American interests.Michael Doran, director of Hudson’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, will join Senator James Risch (R-ID), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to examine opportunities, risks, and questions for the future of American foreign policy in the Middle East.

A recent investigative report revealed that Harvard University trained Chinese government officials who were complicit in the ongoing genocide of Uyghurs in Xinjiang, which could constitute a violation of the United States’ sanctions. But this revelation barely scratches the surface of the Chinese Communist Party’s infiltration of Harvard and US higher education broadly. Join Hudson for a conversation about how policymakers can insulate America’s universities from Beijing’s malign influence.

Human rights advocate and Executive Director of Campaign for Uyghurs Rushan Abbas will officially launch her memoir, Unbroken: One Uyghur’s Fight for Freedom, at Hudson with Olivia Enos and other experts.In this book, Abbas shares her story of growing up in Xinjiang and becoming one of the most prominent voices speaking out against atrocities committed by the Chinese Communist Party against the Uyghur people. Unbroken is a story of identity, personal loss, resistance, and resilience in the face of injustice.Join Hudson for a discussion of the book and the ways the United States and other countries can support the Uyghur people in their time of need.

Generative artificial intelligence is revolutionizing how humans work and create. Since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, Americans across the economic spectrum have recognized that AI-enabled tools are groundbreaking and powerful collaborators that can help generate fresh ideas and refine raw concepts into polished works. While the copyright system has continually adapted to technological advancements that shape the creation and copying of original works of authorship, the rapid evolution of generative AI presents distinct challenges for copyright owners.In early 2023, the United States Copyright Office launched a comprehensive initiative to examine the legal and policy implications of AI. This study has produced three reports so far, with the highly anticipated third report—released on May 9, 2025—addressing the complex issues surrounding the use of copyrighted materials to train generative AI systems. As more than 40 lawsuits against AI companies make their way through the courts, there is significant interest in understanding the Copyright Office’s stance on whether AI training constitutes copyright infringement or falls under the fair use doctrine.Join Hudson for an expert panel discussion exploring the office’s latest report and its implications for the future of generative AI training.

As Congress considers reauthorizing the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), lawmakers from both parties are recognizing Latin America’s importance to US interests. Increased American investment in the region could help counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative, drive economic growth in the Western Hemisphere, and promote America’s global standing.Beijing’s efforts to increase its influence in Latin America have intensified over the past decade. Chinese investments in Latin America since 2015 exceed $130 billion. Meanwhile, political instability and insecurity have compounded longstanding economic challenges in the region. In these conditions, the US urgently needs a new economic engagement strategy that prioritizes broad-based economic development.Join Hudson for a panel that will examine some of the tools that could help revitalize US investment in the region, including development finance, political risk insurance, and economic innovation zones.

President Donald Trump’s America First economic agenda aims to build a robust and thriving economy for the benefit of all Americans. Revitalizing patents is crucial to achieving this vision. Since the Founding era, reliable and effective patents have been key to growing the United States’ innovation economy. Intellectual property rights are critical today for universities and startups, the classic market disrupters that President Trump has called “little tech.” These relatively small organizations drive innovation in the US and sustain the American dream.Intellectual property rights are also crucial to US national security. Patents and other protections play a critical role in the race for global technological leadership, particularly in competition with China.Join Hudson for an expert panel on how reliable and effective patent rights are the key to the America First agenda: growing the US innovation economy, creating jobs, and responding to challenges from global competitors like China.

The war in Ukraine and the United States’ operation to defend shipping against Houthi attacks in the Red Sea highlight how weapons inventories can make the difference between deterring aggression and losing a war. But the US military’s munitions portfolio is weighted toward sophisticated missiles whose tightly integrated designs and bespoke supply chains cannot be produced—or modified—at the pace modern conflict demands. As a result, current operations are depleting the magazines US forces will need in a potential confrontation against China.But today’s conflicts also demonstrate that a new generation of less-sophisticated missiles and drone/missile hybrids is increasingly effective on the modern battlefield. The proliferation of advanced software and commercial microelectronics has helped enable Houthi rebels and Ukraine’s defenders to stress or overcome more capable adversaries. The US military could exploit these same innovations to field a new family of munitions that can provide scale and adaptability and complement the lethality and reach of its most capable weapons.Join Hudson Senior Fellows Bryan Clark and Nadia Schadlow for a discussion of the opportunities and challenges in establishing a new weapons design and development approach with leaders from the US Air Force, Defense Innovation Unit, and US defense industry.

Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, and many other inventors were enabled by the United States’ patent system, which has created wealth, spurred commercial and industrial progress, and improved the American standard of living for well over a century. But since then, policy changes have weakened this system, creating a wedge between creativity and ownership. In his new book To Invent Is Divine: Creativity and Ownership, James Edwards discusses how the intellectual property (IP) system designed by the American Founders became the world’s “gold standard.”  He explains how patents—and IP generally—combine creative ability with ownership incentives, democratizing invention and securing the fruits of inventive labors with property rights.Join Adam Mossoff for a conversation with the author about why IP protections are essential for fostering human flourishing, how the American system has been degraded, and steps policymakers can take to restore the system that has benefited the US and the world.

As the Trump administration reevaluates the United States’ approach to foreign assistance and global health programs, the People’s Republic of China is sending a message throughout the Global South: America cannot be trusted. As the PRC seeks to supplant the US as the world’s preeminent power, America’s commitment to continue leading in global health—specifically in the fight against malaria—is more critical than ever.Experts and policymakers will join Hudson’s Michael Sobolik to discuss how leadership in the fight against malaria matters to US-China competition.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, a leading voice in support of increasing Europe’s role in the transatlantic alliance, will join Hudson for a fireside chat.Croatia has long been a bastion of stability in southeastern Europe and a strong friend and ally of the United States. Facing an increasingly dangerous security environment, Zagreb is answering the call to boost Europe’s defenses. In April, the nation announced it would increase its defense spending from 2 to 2.5 percent of its gross domestic product by 2027, with a plan to reach 3 percent by 2030.A strong supporter of Ukraine, Prime Minister Plenković stated in February that any future peace “must be just and principled.” Since 2022, Croatia has donated aid equivalent to over 0.5 percent of its GDP, rivaling America’s relative total support.Croatia is also important to Europe’s energy and economic security. It has nearly doubled its GDP under Prime Minister Plenković and is now the European Union’s second-fastest-growing economy, with record low unemployment and rapidly declining public debt. Croatia has successfully positioned itself as a regional energy hub thanks to its liquefied natural gas and oil terminals on the island of Krk.At Hudson, Prime Minister Plenković will discuss the future of the EU-US relationship and why strong alliances are important for meeting today’s challenges.