Courses

INTA 4050: International Affairs and Technology Policy Making

This term (Spring 2026) I am teaching INTA 4050: International Affairs and Technology Policy Making, a three-credit course for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in international affairs, politics, computer science, and engineering.

A growing number of geopolitical struggles are now fought through infrastructure: chips and compute, undersea cables and satellites, standards and supply chains, and the cloud platforms that increasingly mediate economic and military power. This course examines how international technology policy is made in practice when interdependence is inescapable but security stakes are rising.

We focus on the policy instruments that translate technical capability into political leverage: export controls and industrial policy, platform regulation and content governance, cybersecurity strategies and alliance coordination, and the management of high-consequence transitions such as post-quantum cryptography. While the course focuses primarily on the fast-evolving relationships among the United States, Europe, and China, the dynamics we study routinely extend beyond this core and shape technology policy worldwide.

The course is deliberately applied. Students learn to read strategies and policy documents as instruments of power, to identify assumptions and implementation risks, and to produce decision-grade outputs under real-world constraints. Assessment emphasises professional policy writing, one in-class crisis simulation, and a final portfolio submitted as an alternative final assessment rather than in-class exams.

Core propositions

Infrastructure creates leverage. The most durable advantages often come from chokepoints, dependencies, and switching costs, not just innovation.
Governance happens in the plumbing. Standards, procurement policies, compliance regimes, liability rules, and interoperability constraints can lock in power and shape conflict.
Dual-use is normal. Civilian systems routinely become security-relevant because they are widely deployed, privately operated, and difficult to replace quickly.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

explain how material and digital infrastructures reshape the international system;
evaluate competing policy strategies across jurisdictions; and
communicate clear recommendations to decision-makers under uncertainty and time pressure.

Course materials

Lecture slides and course materials are available on Canvas (GT login credentials required).