Meselson Center

The Meselson Center is dedicated to reducing risks from biological threats and emerging technologies. The center combines in-depth policy research with state-of-the-art technical research to provide policymakers with the information and expertise needed to prevent, prepare for, and mitigate large-scale catastrophes, such as pandemics.

Microbiology research scientist examining a petri dish containing a biohazard sample during an experiment in the laboratory, photo by Image Source/Adobe Stock

Photo by Image Source/Adobe Stock

Featured Work

Policy Options to Prevent the Creation of Mirror Organisms
Mirror life could potentially proliferate throughout the biosphere and evade major components of natural hosts’ immune systems. RAND researchers describe ways to prevent the emergence of mirror organisms, whose molecular components are a mirror to those found in nature.
How to Get Ahead of H5N1
The ongoing H5N1 outbreak presents a critical test of America's ability to apply the hard-earned lessons of recent health emergencies. The time to act is not when the threat becomes unmanageable—it is now, when swift, coordinated efforts can make the greatest impact.
The New Bioweapons: How Synthetic Biology Could Destabilize the World
It remains unclear whether COVID-19 arose from such activities or entered the human population via interaction with wildlife. Either way, it is clear that biological technology, now boosted by artificial intelligence, has made it simpler than ever to produce diseases.
Securing Commercial Nucleic Acid Synthesis
Securing nucleic acid synthesis is a policy priority for the U.S. government and the synthetic biology industry. What are some recommendations that expand on and strengthen government communications?
How AI Labs Can Safeguard Model Weights
As frontier artificial intelligence models become more capable, protecting them from theft and misuse will become more important. What can be done to protect model weights—the learnable parameters that encode the core intelligence of an AI—from potential attackers?
Supporting Follow-Up Screening for Flagged Nucleic Acid Synthesis Orders
When securing nucleic acid synthesis, follow-up screening and reporting must be addressed. Many decisions about synthesis order fulfillment hinge on questions about the customer.

Research Focus Areas

Biosecurity

The primary area of work the Meselson Center focuses on is reducing risks of biological threats such as pandemics. This includes:

Biosurveillance: Supporting early detection and containment of outbreaks, with a particular emphasis on the detection of novel pathogens.
Dual-use research of concern on potential pandemic pathogens: Mitigating risks from such research while maximizing potential benefits.
Nucleic acid synthesis screening and other access controls: Ensuring that state of the art technology is used by experts for the benefit of all without being abused or accidentally misused.
AI-enabled biology: Understanding how artificial intelligence and related emerging technologies are affecting the biological field and how governance regimes will need to change given these developments.
Bioterrorism and democratization of risks: Understanding how technological developments interact with the circle of capability for bioattacks, and what can be done address those risks.
Cyberbiosecurity: Exploring how biotech systems should be secured in a world that is rapidly becoming more digitized, interconnected, and autonomous.

AI Security

The Meselson Center also works on topics in the intersection of artificial intelligence and information security. This includes:

Securing AI system: Ensuring that frontier artificial intelligence systems are secure against abuse, misuse and exploitation.
Cybersecurity capabilities of AI models: Understanding what AI models are capable of in the cybersecurity domain, what they will likely be capable of soon, and the implications of this for industry and policymakers.

Funding

The Meselson Center is dedicated to reducing risks from biological threats and emerging technologies. The center combines policy research with technical research to provide policymakers with the information needed to prevent, prepare for, and mitigate large-scale catastrophes. The Meselson Center is grateful for the generous support that enables its important work. Much of the center's independently initiated research is conducted using gifts from philanthropic supporters Open Philanthropy, Good Ventures, and—for research on the evaluation of offensive cyber capabilities—The Audacious Project, as well as gifts from other RAND supporters and income from operations.

All of RAND's research publications include information about the funding sources for individual research projects. Learn more about how we ensure the integrity of our research.

For more information, contact meselson@rand.org.

Collaboration Opportunities

We are always looking for collaboration and engagement with organizations, leaders, and highly motivated individuals wanting to work in the biosecurity and AI security space.

We are currently looking to fill these roles:

We encourage you to apply for open positions through the links above. Email meselson@rand.org to discuss other collaboration opportunities.

Staff and Contact Info

Emmy Kampe
Johnson Ramsaur

If you have questions about the Meselson Center or are interested in learning more, please contact meselson@rand.org.

Meselson Center

Sella Nevo

Henry H. Willis

Featured Work

Policy Options to Prevent the Creation of Mirror Organisms

How to Get Ahead of H5N1

The New Bioweapons: How Synthetic Biology Could Destabilize the World

Securing Commercial Nucleic Acid Synthesis

How AI Labs Can Safeguard Model Weights

Supporting Follow-Up Screening for Flagged Nucleic Acid Synthesis Orders