Diplo Blog
How South Korea’s beauty industry remade its national image
18 September 2025
In the brightly lit aisles of a Sephora in Paris or a Target in Ohio, among the legacy brands of France and the United States, a new kind of aesthetic authority has taken hold. It announces itself not with bold proclamations but with the pastel packaging of serums, the whimsical design of animal-faced sheet masks, […]
Origins of AI: From neurons to neural networks
17 September 2025
As AI penetrates more and more areas of our work, study, and life, it’s being used and adopted by people far beyond the tech-savvy among us. So it’s always a good moment to pause, learn and understand some background: how AI came to be, who invented it, what it is made of, why it consumes […]
Publications by Diplomats: Public Diplomacy Par Excellence
16 September 2025
Public diplomacy is often differentiated from “traditional diplomacy” whereby the former is primarily an activity to engage with the public, while the latter is mainly focused on government-to-government channels. Going deeper, the main strands of defining public diplomacy would differentiate between a restrictive view, seeing it as an activity undertaken by government institutions engaging with […]
Arabic philosophical traditions in the AI era
16 September 2025
Principles and values, Artificial Intelligence, Internet governance and digital policy
Ahead of Diplo’s visit to the Gulf region, and while still reflecting on the impressions from the AI, Governance and Philosophy – A Global Dialogue, namely the fact that no single cultural milieu contains all the answers needed for a just and humane future shaped by AI, I began exploring what may be the insights […]
Diplomacy in beta: From Geneva principles to Abu Dhabi deliberations in the age of algorithms
15 September 2025
Capacity development, Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Geopolitics, International relations and diplomacy, Politics and governance
The world is changing fast — but how fast is diplomacy keeping up? The Hili Forum in Abu Dhabi (8–9 September 2025) brought together policymakers, diplomats, and experts to explore how technology, geopolitics, and multilateral governance intersect in an era of uncertainty. How do states navigate an era where algorithms can decide who lives or […]
Nudges, incentives, and unintended outcomes
13 September 2025
When making everyday choices about food, shopping, or pensions, nudges steer us subtly – while incentives often misfire. Both reveal how good intentions can lead to unintended outcomes. Aldo Matteucci writes.
Dubai chocolate: A delicious example of culinary diplomacy
11 September 2025
Soft power diplomacy, Culinary diplomacy, Cultural diplomacy, Public diplomacy
In a world of food trends, few have captured global attention quite like Dubai chocolate, a rich, artisanal chocolate bar infused with traditional Middle Eastern flavours that quickly became a viral sensation. Beyond its irresistible taste and visual appeal, Dubai chocolate shows how food can become a powerful diplomatic tool, promoting a destination’s image worldwide […]
Who needs diplomats when you have Taylor Swift?
04 September 2025
In today’s media-saturated world, diplomacy no longer belongs solely to governments. From Bono shaping G8 agendas to Taylor Swift nudging voter turnout, celebrities have become powerful players in global politics. This rise of 'celebrity diplomacy' signals both new opportunities for influence and deep challenges of legitimacy, accountability, and control.
Why apprenticeship and storytelling are the future of learning in the AI Era
03 September 2025
The biggest obstacle to the AI transformation isn’t the technology itself. It’s the way we still teach. This simple chart says it all: the use of ChatGPT among students drops sharply at the end of the academic year. Why? Because AI has become a tool for finishing essays, assignments, and theses, tasks shaped by outdated […]
Nomads and settlers: Conflict, fear, and politics
02 September 2025
Walls, trade, conquest, diplomacy – states tried every strategy against nomads. None lasted. Sooner or later, the riders returned. Aldo Matteucci writes.
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