Future of Life Institute

Boston, MA, USA

mature30 peopleFounded 2014

The Future of Life Institute (FLI) is a nonprofit organization founded in 2014 that works to reduce global catastrophic and existential risk from powerful technologies. FLI focuses primarily on artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and nuclear weapons, pursuing its mission through policy advocacy, grantmaking, research support, and public outreach. The organization is known for producing the Asilomar AI Principles, the 2023 open letter calling for a pause on giant AI experiments, and the viral Slaughterbots film on autonomous weapons. FLI operates internationally with staff across the US and Europe, engaging with the United Nations, the US government, and European Union institutions.

Funding Details

Annual Budget: $17,000,000
Monthly Burn Rate: $1,417,000
Current Runway: -
Funding Goal: -
Funding Raised to Date: -
Fiscal Sponsor: -

Theory of Change

FLI believes that how transformative technologies are developed and deployed will be the most critical factor determining life's future. Their theory of change operates across multiple channels: bridging the gap between technical experts who understand transformative technologies and the public institutions with the legitimacy and means to govern them through policy advocacy; directly funding research on insufficiently addressed technological risks through grantmaking; educating policymakers, technologists, and the general public about both the challenges and opportunities of powerful technologies; designing new institutions and governance frameworks for managing world-changing technologies; and convening global stakeholders to coordinate action on existential risks. By working at the intersection of technical expertise and institutional governance, FLI aims to ensure that advanced AI, biotechnology, and nuclear weapons are managed in ways that reduce catastrophic risk while enabling beneficial outcomes.