Anja Kaspersen is a Director for Global Markets Development, Frontier Issues and Critical Technologies at the IEEE and IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA). She also serves as a member of INTERPOL’s Standing Committee on Ethical Matters (SCEM) and as an Executive in Residence at New York University. She is a member of the UNCTAD/UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) Multi-Stakeholder Working Group on Data Governance at All Levels, a Special Advisor on Digital Technologies, Equity, Peace and Democracy with the Kofi Annan Foundation, and a member of the Force for Good Advisory Council. She is a former Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, where together with Wendell Wallach she co-founded and led the Artificial Intelligence and Equality Initiative.

Kaspersen has held numerous positions across the United Nations system, with a career spanning peacekeeping, development, and humanitarian affairs. She previously served as Director of the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs in Geneva and as Deputy Secretary-General of the Conference on Disarmament. She served as Head of Strategic Engagement and New Technologies at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), where she led efforts to help the organisation understand and engage with the impact of emerging technologies, cyber capabilities, and artificial intelligence on its humanitarian mandate. She also held senior roles at the World Economic Forum as Senior Director for Geopolitics and International Security and was a member of its Executive Leadership Committee.

As a long-serving Norwegian diplomat, Kaspersen has worked extensively on issues relating to national and international security, oceans governance, regional cooperation, and bilateral affairs. As an academic, she has been involved in multiple reform efforts at both the United Nations and national levels, focusing on adapting governance frameworks to the rapidly changing security and geopolitical landscape. She has led and contributed to major policy processes, authored seminal reports, and advised on the ethical, political, and strategic implications of emerging technologies and scientific innovation.

She is a published author and global speaker on issues related to geopolitics, multilateralism, international security, socio-technical standards, critical infrastructure, defence, cyber-critical systems, emerging technologies, and artificial intelligence. She is an alumna of the International Gender Champions network, a co-founder of the IEEE Life Sciences Innovation and AI Industry Connections Programme, a member of the Force for Good Board, and a member of the Council of the International Military Council on Climate and Security.

Kaspersen has received multiple recognitions for her leadership and contributions to technology and ethics, including being named one of the 100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics™ in 2019 and 2020, one of the Top 50 Innovators in the World Summit AI community in 2020, and one of Norway’s 50 Leading Women in Technology in 2024.