Decision-Making at the Edge: Using Games as an AI Governance Tool

The greatest opportunity in the AI era isn't just the technology—it’s the human capacity to steer it toward breakthrough discoveries. As AI begins to fundamentally accelerate the pace of scientific exploration, we are entering a period of unprecedented potential and uncertainty. In this high-velocity environment, there is a greater need than ever for broadening our toolkit for foresight to capture the dynamics of a high-pressure, interconnected reality.
In this session, Google DeepMind, The Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA), and Technology Strategy Roleplay (TSR) explore a dynamic new frontier: Serious Gaming. We will discuss our work developing Science 2030, a strategic simulation designed to "windtunnel" the next five years of AI-accelerated science. Rather than just talking about the future, we will invite the SXSW audience to engage with it by participating in a live horizon-scanning exercise, revealing divergent audience timelines and impressions as a hook to kick off the broader discussion.