Dear Friends and Partners,

As 2024 comes to a close, I want to take a moment to thank you for being part of our community. The mission of aligning AI through better governance is a significant undertaking, requiring engagement with a broad and diverse ecosystem including government, industry, civil society, academia, and individual citizens. Our ability to drive impact depends on your collaboration and support.

There were many ways that you have helped us to realize our mission this past year. In particular, I want to recognize everyone who joined us in-person and online for The Sixth Edition of The Athens Roundtable, all who contributed to our consultation for France’s AI Action Summit, and those who have been working alongside us throughout the European AI Act Code of Practice process. These are just some of the ways that we are collectively strengthening AI governance, holding industry players accountable through more inclusive processes.

I have been honored to lead this unique organization for a year now, having been a member of the team since 2018. I am deeply grateful to all who have partnered with us on the journey so far.

This year marked ten years since the founding of The Future Society in 2014. Our organization has been working on how to govern AI technologies since before concerns about their consequences became mainstream. I can’t help but reflect on what AI governance would look like today if The Future Society never existed. There remains a lot of work, of course, especially with the rapid technological acceleration of the past three years. But there is much to celebrate from The Future Society’s first decade, and I invite you to watch this short film with ten examples of our achievements over these ten years.

While looking back at our impact, it’s important to be clear-eyed about our plan for 2025. This year will begin with France’s AI Action Summit, the first such convening to invite public participation through the consultation we co-led. Combined with the finalization of the EU Code of Practice, Paris and Brussels are taking a more active role in shaping the governance of general-purpose AI. We are also hopeful about the prospects for the AI Safety Institute Network for improving international cooperation toward secure, safe, and trustworthy AI. We are excited to be scaling up The Future Society’s work in the United States, as we set up our U.S. AI Governance theme under the leadership of our newest director. Across our work, The Future Society is committed to ensuring leaders can benefit from the insights and expertise of civil society.

The coming years will be decisive for establishing and defending meaningful rules for general-purpose AI. During these pivotal times, we are doubling down on research, convening, and advisory efforts to match the prominence that AI governance has taken on the agendas of world leaders. To do this, we will continue to rely on contributions from those who share our view that AI governance is one of the most pressing challenges of our time.

We hope you will consider helping to sustain and expand our work. I thank our donors for providing the financial support that makes our nonprofit work possible.

Finally, I’d like to express my deepest appreciation for the sagacity of our Board of Directors and for the efforts of our team. On a working retreat earlier this year, I asked my colleagues about why they care about AI governance. Each of their responses reflected a genuine commitment to serving the public interest and reminded me of how privileged I am to work with such exceptional people, whose good intentions, brilliance, and dedication inspire me everyday.

On behalf of everyone on our team, I wish you a fulfilling 2025 and I look forward to continuing our work in the new year. Together, we can make progress towards greater accountability in AI and steer towards a more positive future for all of us.

Warmest regards,

Nicolas Moës
Executive Director, The Future Society