Dr Simon Staffell is a visiting research fellow in technology and international security at the Department of War Studies, and a fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). He is UK Government Affairs Director at Microsoft. He previously served in the UK government, working primarily on national security issues and held senior appointments in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Home Office and Cabinet Office, and postings in Cairo and Washington DC.

He was awarded his PhD in politics from Sheffield University in 2010 and was previously an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University in Washington DC.

His research interests include emerging technology and national security, cyber security, artificial intelligence, counter terrorism.

Research Interests

• Emerging technology and National Security
• Cyber Security
• Counter-terrorism

Publications

• Staffell, S., 2021. The Integrated Review: A Technological Revolution at the Heart of UK Defence and National Security. [online] RUSI. Available here.
• Staffell, S., Trager, R., Harack, B., Reuel, A., Carnegie, A., Heim, L., Ho, L., Kreps, S., Lall, R., Larter, O., Ó hÉigeartaigh, S., & Villalobos, J.J., 2023. International Governance of Civilian AI: A Jurisdictional Certification Approach. arXiv. Available here.
• Buchser, M., Lawrence, D. and Mehdian-Staffell, S., 2022. Democratic digital governance needs UK and its allies. [online] Chatham House. Available here.
• Staffell, S. (ed.) and Awan, A. (ed.), 2016. Jihadism Transformed: Al-Qaeda and Islamic State's Global Battle of Ideas, Oxford: Oxford University Press (2016). Available here.