Switzerland and India Explore Partnership on Anticipatory Science and Global Technology Governance
Anticipatory science diplomacy offers leaders a way to seize fast‑moving scientific breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity, well before they deepen global fractures and inequalities. The GESDA Science Breakthrough Radar® maps the research advances expected to transform society and the planet over the next 5, 10 and 25 years. The New Delhi engagement is part of a growing long-term partnership between Switzerland-based GESDA and India to deepen collaboration around the Science Breakthrough Radar and anchor anticipatory science diplomacy capacities locally.
Building on this shared understanding and on the partners’ commitment to anticipatory science diplomacy, the Embassy of Switzerland in India today hosted an Anticipatory Leadership Lab in collaboration with the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA) and the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India. The Lab brought together around 60 leaders from science, government, diplomacy, business and civil society in a structured, multistakeholder dialogue to strengthen their collective capacity to anticipate and govern emerging scientific and technological breakthroughs.
GESDA’s engagement with Delhi builds on a series of exchanges with Indian counterparts over the past years, including interactions during the 2024 and 2025 GESDA Summits. At the 2025 Summit, GESDA had the pleasure of hosting Prof. A.K. Sood, whose participation further strengthened these connections. Further engagements include Indian representatives who participated in the Geneva Science Diplomacy Weeks, which convene a diverse set of actors from diplomacy, academia, international organizations, industry, and civil society to explore the governance implications of emerging science and technology. In addition, India has plaid a pioneering role as a member of the Advisory Committee of the Open Quantum Institute – GESDA’s anticipatory governance initiative designed to address the societal implications of quantum technologies before they reach full maturity and widespread deployment.
Recent discussions have led to engagements in New Delhi in March 2025, including bilateral meetings with the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA/OPSA) and participation in initiatives such as the Raisina Young Fellows Forum and the newly created Raisina Science Diplomacy Initiative (SDI). These exchanges have also explored opportunities to develop a longer-term partnership with Indian counterparts, including the potential co-design of an India-anchored Anticipatory Leadership Week (ALW) in 2026, alongside continued dialogue and tailored activities connecting GESDA Radar insights with Indian institutions and national priorities.
Using the Future to Build the Present
In the “Anticipatory Leadership Lab,” participants collaborated to explore how frontier technologies could impact India and the world across various timeframes, identify opportunities and risks for public policy, diplomacy, and industry, and suggest actionable steps for cooperation. The approach is grounded on the principle that governance discussions should be informed by anticipatory science. By identifying potential breakthroughs early, countries can cooperate before competition, fragmentation or crisis dynamics take hold.
Mr. Alexandre Fasel, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Switzerland, said:
“For the Swiss government, anticipating and understanding scientific breakthroughs is no longer a luxury, but a diplomatic necessity. Science and technology have become a “core currency” in international affairs, influencing prosperity, sovereignty, and security on a global scale. Switzerland has therefore made anticipatory science diplomacy a priority in our foreign policy. Our collaboration with India reflects a shared vision between two global innovation leaders, combining cutting-edge excellence with India’s unparalleled ability to scale innovation for millions.”
Professor A.K. Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, said:
As a technology matures and disruption occurs, a governance gap becomes visible. It is then the usual governance mechanism convenes, deliberate, and responds. This conventional reactive cycle served us adequately in eras when the pace of change was measured in decades. However, it is no longer adequate. The disruptive frontiers that will define the next quarter-century - quantum computing, artificial general intelligence, synthetic biology, neurotechnology are not distant abstractions. The governance choices we make in the next five to ten years will determine the effectiveness with which these technologies serve humanity.
Professor Marilyne Andersen, Director General of GESDA, said:
“Anticipatory science diplomacy enables us to harness fast-moving scientific breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity before they deepen global fractures and inequalities. It grounds decision-making in rigorous science, allowing to keep the conversation open and preserved from competition, pressures or quick fixes. It opens an essential window of agency so as to carefully account for all implications and involve policymakers, diplomats, scientists, innovators and citizens across geographies, socio-economic realities and cultural contexts around the table.”