Intelligence Rising

Intelligence Rising is a strategic AI futures simulation and training workshop designed to help current and future decision-makers understand the risks and dynamics of competitive AI development. Participants embody characters such as elected officials and their AI advisors in major states, and CEOs and their executive teams at leading technology firms, attempting to emulate how these actors might behave over a simulated decade of AI progress and exploring the implications of their choices.

The project was originally conceived by Dr. Shahar Avin at the University of Cambridge's Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER), inspired by a 3-person AI futures roleplay he participated in at the Future of Humanity Institute in 2017. Initial development was funded by a grant from the Long-Term Future Fund in 2019, and the project began generating revenue through paid workshops in 2021. The simulation was developed by researchers from the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, and Wichita State, alongside non-academic collaborators.

In 2022, the project was formally incorporated as Technology Strategy Roleplay (TSR), a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered in England and Wales (charity number 1200928). TSR serves as the parent organization for Intelligence Rising and deploys the simulation across academia, civil society, government, and industry in the EU, US, and UK.

The core staff includes Sanjana Kashyap as Chief Operating Officer, Eran Aviram as Senior Game Designer, and Dayna Cabrera as Operations Associate. The facilitation team draws on practitioners and researchers affiliated with institutions such as Cambridge University, the UK AI Security Institute, Oxford, and Wichita State University. An independent evaluation by the University of Cambridge (2020-2023) found that 84% of participants would recommend Intelligence Rising after playing.

For the financial year ending April 2025, Technology Strategy Roleplay reported total income of £306,497 and total expenditure of £220,105. Revenue is generated primarily through fees for facilitated workshops with clients across government, AI labs, industry, academia, NGOs, think tanks, and student programs.