Dr. Bulelani Jili

Dr. Bulelani Jili is recognised globally as one of the most authoritative voices on artificial intelligence governance, digital sovereignty, and the geopolitics of emerging technologies. As an Assistant Professor at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service and Faculty Associate at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, he operates at the centre of academic research, public policy, and real-world technological change. Bulelani’s work focuses on how AI systems, digital infrastructure, and surveillance technologies reshape power, accountability, and inequality, particularly across Africa, China, and the wider Global South. His perspective is valued for its intellectual rigour and its ability to connect global technology debates to lived political and economic realities.

Bulelani’s career spans some of the world’s most influential institutions. Alongside his roles at Georgetown and Harvard, he has held fellowships and visiting positions at Yale Law School, New America, the Atlantic Council, and Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. He is also a former Committee Member of the IEEE Standards Association’s Global Initiative on Ethics of AI Systems, contributing directly to global standards on responsible and ethical AI. His research examines AI governance, cybersecurity, ICT development, data protection, and Africa–China relations, blending quantitative and qualitative methods to deliver deep empirical insight. This breadth allows Bulelani to speak fluently to policymakers, technologists, and business leaders alike.

An award-winning scholar, Bulelani is the Inaugural Tech Policy Research Fellow at Meta and a recipient of prestigious honours including the Meta Research PhD Fellowship, Google Public Policy Fellowship, and Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Fellowship. He has advised senior decision-makers and organisations such as the United Nations, OpenAI, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, and the US State Department, as well as contributing expert analysis to debates in the US Senate. His work has also engaged landmark legal questions, including supporting an amicus curiae brief before the US Supreme Court on authorship and copyright in AI-generated works. His writing appears regularly in leading global publications, bringing scholarly insight into mainstream policy and public debate.

As a keynote speaker, Bulelani is known for turning complex technological and geopolitical issues into clear, compelling narratives. He speaks internationally across Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia, addressing audiences ranging from government leaders to corporate boards. His talks explore AI governance and global power, digital sovereignty and dependency, surveillance technologies and human rights, and China’s expanding digital footprint. In one keynote, he illustrated how AI-driven surveillance adopted in African cities can quietly reshape democratic accountability and public trust. Bulelani delivers thought-provoking, insight-driven keynotes that equip audiences to understand and respond to the political realities of our digital future.