Diplomats and Tech Experts Gather in St Andrews for IR Summit

Diplomats, tech executives, and academics flocked to Younger Hall last week to discuss all things geopolitics and emerging technologies for the inaugural St Andrews Summit.

Previously known as the St Andrews Speaker Conference — an event run for over two decades by the Foreign Affairs Society — the first summit of its kind, was held on 22 March, with support from the University of St Andrews' Department of International Relations.

This year's theme was ‘The Geopolitics of Emerging Technologies in a Fragmented World’. The day featured keynote addresses from experts like Sir Robin Niblett, former director of Chatham House, alongside panel discussions on subjects like the future of warfare and artificial intelligence, and quantum computing.

Other high-profile guests included Paul Stein, former Chief Technology Officer of Rolls-Royce, as well as diplomatic figures such as the Ethiopian and Moroccan Ambassadors to the UK, and Finland’s Defence Attaché.

Boray Taspinar-Sherifovsky, the Summit’s President, emphasised the event’s evolution and expanding scale, noting that it has grown beyond its previous format under the Foreign Affairs Society.

He stated: “In some ways, it has been running for twenty years. In some ways, this is the first year it's ever happened. It certainly was the largest summit of its kind in Scotland in some years. I don't think anything of the sort has happened anywhere in Scotland. We had think tankers and policy makers from IISS, the Royal United Services Institute, Chatham House and quite a few others coming from London and beyond, which, for a small town like St Andrews, is kind of insane. This year’s summit was intended for genuine knowledge and value exchange. The theme is so multi-dimensional and interdisciplinary that it requires voices from policy, diplomacy, physics, and beyond.”

Around seventy students attended the event, but Taspinar-Sherifovsky hopes participation will grow in the future, particularly if funding allows for lower ticket prices.

“We hope that in the future, with enough sponsorships and alternative funding, we can make the summit even more accessible,” he said.

“The response from students has been overwhelmingly positive,” he added, noting an influx of emails from those eager to be involved in next year’s event.

“It says so much more than any other piece of feedback — more than a clap or a thank-you message. People want to be part of this, to contribute, and to shape its future.”

Image by Alexey Shamagin