Center for Humane Technology

The Center for Humane Technology (CHT) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2018 by Tristan Harris, Aza Raskin, and Randima Fernando. Headquartered in San Francisco, the organization emerged from Harris's earlier work as a Design Ethicist at Google, where in 2013 he created a viral internal presentation titled "A Call to Minimize Distraction & Respect Users' Attention" that launched the Time Well Spent movement challenging the attention economy. CHT's core thesis is that misaligned incentives, not technology itself, drive harmful outcomes. The organization works to create clarity about how the tech ecosystem operates, then develops targeted interventions to shift those incentives through three channels: public awareness, policy expertise, and technical knowledge. The organization first gained massive public recognition through The Social Dilemma, a 2020 Netflix documentary featuring CHT co-founders that was viewed in 38 million homes within its first 28 days. In March 2023, CHT released The AI Dilemma, a presentation warning about the risks of rapid AI deployment that garnered over 3 million views on YouTube. CHT's current work spans several domains. The organization produces the podcast Your Undivided Attention, co-hosted by Tristan Harris, Aza Raskin, and Daniel Barcay, which features conversations with leading technologists, policymakers, and researchers about AI and technology governance. CHT serves as an expert consultant in strategic litigation, notably the landmark case against Character.AI involving the suicide of a 14-year-old after interactions with an AI chatbot, where CHT briefed and trained the legal team on how the product's design contributed to harm. In policy, CHT engages with institutions including the European Commission, the National Association of Attorneys General, and the U.S. Congress, advocating for regulatory frameworks that address AI safety. The organization structures AI risks across five interconnected domains: relationships and community, work and dignity, power concentration and decentralization, shared understanding, and loss of control. In 2026, CHT launched a new initiative called "AI and What Makes Us Human," addressing what new norms, legal protections, and fundamental rights are needed to preserve what makes life meaningful in the age of AI. The organization is led by President and Co-Founder Tristan Harris and Executive Director Julie Guirado, with a team of approximately 20 staff members and a board of seven directors. CHT has received a four-star rating (95%) from Charity Navigator.