AISA serves as an agile, entrepreneurial partner to multilateral platforms and national institutions to strengthen AI governance in Asia.
We act as a bridge between technical frontier risks and sovereign policy, utilising deep, established relationships with senior officials and diplomats to ensure that AI governance decisions are guided by national security, international collaboration and public interest.
AI Safety Asia (AISA) began with a simple belief — that the future of artificial intelligence in Asia should be shaped by collaboration, not competition.
Across the region, AI is evolving faster than the frameworks that govern it. Researchers, policymakers, and civil society all face the same challenge: how to harness innovation without losing human values and agency.
AISA was founded to bridge these worlds — turning dialogue into strategy, research into action, and regional diversity into shared strength. By connecting experts across borders, we’re helping Asia lead with empathy, foresight, and purpose.
Recognised as an official member of UNESCO’s CSO Network on AI Ethics, WEF’s AI Governance Alliance, an IASEAI affiliate, and a Partnership on AI partner organisation.
Completed a four-country AI-biosecurity mapping study (Thailand, Philippines, India, UK) for the UK’s FCDO.
Hosted a tabletop exercise for 50 diplomats at the Biological Weapons Convention’s Geneva Working Group meeting.
Hosted the AI Diplomacy Crisis tabletop exercise on the official APEC agenda in Dalian, extending the Geneva simulation into a recurring regional forum for senior government leaders.
SEA Observatory named a WSIS Prize 2026 nominee (top 20 in category).
Co-led an AI Diplomacy Crisis tabletop exercise in Geneva with sitting Deputy Ministers, UN ambassadors, FLI, RAND Europe, Chatham House, and the World Bank.
Organised an AI-enabled Biotech Crisis workshop at the Global Health Security Conference, Kuala Lumpur.
Hosted a second cohort of the regional civil-society training, growing to 19 CSOs.
Convened a BPO Worker Dialogue & AI Transition Workshop in Manila (with UNESCO).
Co-organised an AI-Engineering Biology roundtable at the British Embassy, Manila (with the UK’s FCDO).
Briefed Indonesia’s national AI policy task force on the International AI Safety Report.
Signed a Letter of Intent with Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs.
Conducted the second cohort of the Indonesia training programme (38 officials, 11 ministries), directly shaping the country’s draft presidential AI decree.
Featured across four events at the India AI Impact Summit, including a Yoshua Bengio-attended reception and an AI-biosecurity side event.
SEA Observatory awarded second prize at the UNESCO Global Forum on AI Ethics.
RAISE-SEA (AI-augmented societal-preparedness platform) announced at the Paris Peace Forum, earning a top-10 project slot.
Delivered Commonwealth Parliamentary Association / IPU / UNDP parliamentarian training in Kuala Lumpur.
Hosted first regional civil-society AI governance training (13 CSOs represented).
Delivered first AI safety and governance training for senior Indonesian officials (30 leaders, 7 ministries).
Co-authored a report with the Brookings Institution on AI governance in Southeast Asia.
Launched the Cooperative AI course (Asia edition): 36 participants selected from 1,419 applicants across 11 countries.
At AI Safety Asia (AISA), our work is built on shared values that guide how we think, act, and collaborate. These principles remind us that progress in technology must always reflect progress in humanity.
Meet the people driving AISA’s work across research, policy, and capacity building — a team spanning governments, international institutions, and civil society across Asia.
CEO
Founder of Connecting Myanmar, former board member of Amnesty International Hong Kong, and experienced leader in technology startups and non-profits. He holds a Master of Laws in Human Rights with distinction from the University of Hong Kong and attended the Media Policy Institute organized by the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, Oxford.
Chief Research Officer
A global leader shaping the intersection of AI, policy, and human impact. He advises key institutions like the UN and the World Bank, was a key architect of the AI Governance Alliance at the World Economic Forum where he also convened the inaugural AI Governance Summit, and led inclusive-AI programs at Google that reached over a billion users. His work is deeply informed by his upbringing in post-genocide Cambodia, driving his commitment to ensuring technology serves humanity equitably.
Chief Strategy Officer
Scholar-in-residence at the Asia Society. He is adjunct professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration (PPA) and senior fellow at the Centre on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW) at The University of Hong Kong (HKU). He had previously served in the department in 2002 as a senior policy adviser to the Canadian foreign minister, working on the G8 and a review of Canadian foreign policy. A Hong Kong-based independent consultant from 2001 to 2017, he worked with several foundations and international organizations including the G20 Business Summit, the Clinton Global Initiative, the World Economic Forum and the US-Asia Institute.
Chief Operations Officer
Former Global Head of Strategy for Tiktok. Over 10 years experience across product, content operations and digital media at TikTok, the United Nations and The7stars.
Senior Director of International AI Diplomacy
Ann Meceda is a senior technology and policy professional focused on AI governance and international technology policy. Over 20 years as a diplomat with the U.S. Department of State, she helped advance emerging-technology policy and multilateral cooperation with partners including the EU, UN, OECD, ASEAN, and the Arctic Council.
Senior Director of Multilateral Affairs & Head of China
Yolanda Jinxin Ma is a cross-disciplinary professional with over 15 years of experience working at the intersection of AI governance, international development, digital policy, and media innovation. She is currently an ERA AI Governance fellow focusing on China’s AI policy. Yolanda has spent almost a decade with the United Nations Development Programme, based first in Bangkok (2014 ~ 2019) and later in New York (2019 ~ 2023), where she worked on digital transformation and social innovation initiatives that have impacted more than 100 countries. Most recently, Yolanda was the programme lead for the AI & Innovation Concentration at the University of Hong Kong's School of Future Media, where she designed a curriculum and taught courses on artificial intelligence, media, and society. Earlier in her career, she led award-winning data journalism and digital initiatives at Thomson Reuters and the South China Morning Post.
Chief of Staff (Global Affairs)
Adrian bridges AI governance and international dispute resolution as the inaugural Fellow at Stanford Law's AI Initiative and Chief of Staff (Global Affairs) at AI Safety Asia. His research on AI governance, liability, and policy has been published by Cambridge University Press and Hart Publishing. A Stanford LL.M. graduate and lawyer admitted in New York and Hong Kong, he is an active international arbitrator and mediator who has served as a resource person to the Asian Development Bank.
Communications Lead
Melissa Leung is an integrated policy communications professional with experience in the coordination of large-scale regional and global public affairs projects. She advised governments, multinational companies, and multilateral organizations on strategic communications. She led the design and execution of an award-winning nation branding program for the Government of Mongolia. She also served as International Media Coordinator for one of Taiwan’s Presidential candidates in the 2024 presidential election in Taiwan. Melissa holds a first class honours degree in Journalism from the University of Hong Kong and a Masters Degree in Global Public Policy from the University of London
Capacity Building Lead
Anonyo Mitra serves as Capacity Building Lead at AI Safety Asia, where he bridges technical expertise with policy implementation across Southeast Asia. With a Master in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School and over a decade of experience spanning technology, education, and AI governance, Anonyo brings strategic depth to complex stakeholder ecosystems. His work centers on translating frontier AI safety frameworks into actionable capacity-building programs for government officials, policymakers, and civil society actors across the Global South. Anonyo led program management initiatives at Teach For India and served as a Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Summer Associate, consistently demonstrating expertise in systems design and cross-sector collaboration
Director of Biosecurity
P.T. is the Director of Biosecurity at AISA, leading research, capacity building, and convening programs on AI-Bio, starting with Southeast Asia. She was selected as 1 of 20 fellows (from 2,400+ applicants, 100+ countries) for Biosecurity Fellowship 2025 cohort at Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Meeting of States in Geneva. P.T. has contributed to UK Government DNA synthesis screening guidance and co-developed a global risk index for AI-enabled biological tools with CLTR, RAND Europe, and UK policymakers. She has previously co-founded Southeast Asia Biosecurity (SEA Bio), coordinated Singapore’s Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) pilot study, contributed to WHO’s declaration on youth health, and holds a certificate in EU Non-Proliferation and Disarmament training.
Consultant
Sherly is an Indonesian independent digital governance researcher and consultant with a mission to promote the development and deployment of inclusive and accountable digital technologies, regulations, and governance for the benefit of the many. In collaboration with various national (Indonesia) and international partners, her research and advisory work have been bridging the global and national debates and stakeholders on digital governance issues. She actively engages with policymakers, the press, and larger communities. She earned her PhD in Communication Studies from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore in 2019. She is the recipient of the 2020 Internet Histories' Early Career Researcher Award for her article "The Efficacy of Civil Society in Global Internet Governance".
Programme Manager and Stakeholder Engagement Lead
Svaradiva is an AI governance professional bridging technical AI, policy, and multistakeholder engagement across Asia, with government, civil-society, data analytics, and AI-education experience. She has supported Indonesian technology-governance priorities at the Ministry of Communication and Informatics, working with Vice Minister and Director General–level offices on digital regulation, AI governance, cybersecurity, data protection, e-government, and national digital transformation. She also brings experience in strategic digital communications from the Office of the Presidential Spokesperson. A former Chairperson of the Internet Development Institute and co-founder of the Indonesia School of Internet Governance (IDSIG), Svaradiva has led youth-focused programmes on internet governance, digital rights, cybersecurity, and responsible digital development. She contributes to the ID-IGF Task Force and Multistakeholder Advisory Group ecosystem, and has held fellowships with ICANN 82, EuroSSIG, LT-Bridge Winter School, and APNIC 48. Her technical background including being a Data Analytics and AI Instructor at ASSAI School of AI, and was working as a Data Analyst at MAPFRE Malta.
Programme Lead for AI Crisis Diplomacy
Alex Kelati is a policy and strategy professional with experience in crisis response, resilience and cross-government coordination He is completing a Master of Public Policy at the University of Oxford and has worked across the UK Cabinet Office, the Home Office and the Department for International Trade, where he supported high-pressure policy delivery, investment prioritisation and stakeholder engagement. He is currently Programme Lead for AI Crisis Diplomacy at AI Safety Asia, where he helps lead the Scaling Crisis-Ready AI Diplomacy programme, coordinating international tabletop exercises, partner relationships and policy outputs across governments and institutions.
Programme Officer
Ishita Puri is an innovation policy expert specialising in the design and delivery of public R&D programmes. With a particular focus on Indian and UK innovation ecosystems, Ishita has informed government decisions through evidence-based insights and effective project management. She has supported monitoring and assessment of programmes such as the Global Challenges Research Fund, AI diplomacy and European Commission missions. At AISA, she is shaping fundraising activities at the intersection of AI and biosecurity to build capacity with governments, funders and institutions. Ishita is also a Bio-responsibility Future Leader fellow at the Indian Institute of Science.
Product Manager & Software Engineer
Gordon is a product manager and developer at AI Safety Asia, focused on building AI governance tools and support infrastructure for under-resourced regions. He brings a background in multi-disciplinary R&D spanning physical science, mechanical development, and software, alongside applied experience in AI and data. Alongside his work at AI Safety Asia, Gordon works in an AI adoption and training practice, helping organisations implement AI tools safely and effectively and embedding governance and evaluation thinking into real-world workflows.
AISA is guided by a network of advisors whose expertise in AI governance, technology policy, and international diplomacy shapes our strategic direction.
Co-Director of the Oxford Martin AI Governance Initiative
Founding director of Beijing Institute of AI Safety and Governance (Beijing-AISI)
Director, Digital Transformation Education, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford · Former Deputy Secretary of the Singaporean Ministry of Communications and Information
Founder of Apart and Co-founder of European Network for AI Safety
Co-Chair for Global Future Council for Cyber Security at World Economic Forum
President of KORIKA · Delegate to the UK AI Summit on behalf of Indonesia
Former Public Policy Director for Southeast Asia at Meta · Former Executive Director of the Habibie Center
Founding Director and Professor (1999–2016), Journalism and Media Studies Centre, The University of Hong Kong · Founding Dean (2003–2011), Journalism School, Shantou University, China · Co-founder and Director (2004–2016), China Media Project
Prof. Ying Chan, is an editorial and media consultant, China expert, journalist, and e-learning advocate. She is the founding director and professor of the (1999-2016) of the Journalism and Media Studies Centre at The University of Hong Kong, and the founding dean (2003-2011) of the journalism school at Shantou University in China. Prior to that, Chan spent 23 years working as a reporter and editor in New York City. Her honors include a Polk Award, a Nieman Fellowship and an International Freedom of the Press Award by the CPJ. She is the consulting editor for the Chinese edition of the Global Investigative Journalists Network website. She has edited six books on China's media and is the co-founder and director (2004-2016) of the China Media Project
