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The Cipher Brief: National Security news, analysis and expert commentary.

Export Controls Backfire: The China Innovation Paradox

How U.S. chip restrictions slowed Beijing - while accelerating the rise of a parallel AI ecosystem beyond Washington’s control

Export Controls Backfire: The China Innovation Paradox

DEEP DIVE — When the Biden administration rolled out its semiconductor export restrictions in October 2022, the logic seemed airtight: cut off [...] More

ChinaAsia
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The Open Source Report

<span>Global Intelligence Report for Tuesday, February 3, 2026</span>

Global Intelligence Report for Tuesday, February 3, 2026

Ukraine agrees to multi-tiered ceasefire enforcement plan with Europe and U.S.

U.S. to cut tariffs on India to 18% as New Delhi agrees to end Russian oil purchases

U.S., Iranian officials set to meet in Istanbul, launch nuclear talks as Trump’s threats loom

DHS face-scanning app pulls from 1.2 billion‑image database


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Expert Insights

Cipher Brief Experts bring context to today’s global events

EU Takes Aim at Tehran: IRGC Terror Listing Opens New Front in Europe’s Iran Policy

Michael Jacobson

OPINION — On January 29, Europe found its voice against Iran’s apparatus of terror. The European Union (EU) announced that it is adding Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to its list of designated terrorist [...] More

Middle EastEurope

Inside the $35 Billion Plan to Track Hypersonic Missiles from Space

Walter Pincus

OPINION — “The Department of Defense’s Space Development Agency (SDA) is developing a new space-based architecture comprised of a large constellation of at least 300-500 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) to detect and [...] More

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News & Analysis

China’s Stunning Military Purge – and What It Means For Taiwan

China’s Stunning Military Purge – and What It Means For Taiwan

DEEP DIVE – President Xi Jinping’s latest purge of generals has eviscerated China’s military leadership, drawn comparisons to crackdowns carried out [...] More

ChinaAsia

Opinion

Should Western Tech Giants Partner With Pro-Hamas Network Al Jazeera?

Toby Dershowitz

Should Western Tech Giants Partner With Pro-Hamas Network Al Jazeera?

OPINION — A few weeks ago, Al Jazeera named Google Cloud as its primary technology provider for “The Core,” a sweeping program designed to integrate [...] More

Middle EastAlternative Perspectives

What’s on The Cipher Brief’s Digital Channel

Tapping a China Vibe in South Koreaplay icon

Tapping a China Vibe in South Korea

The Open Source Report

Book Reviews

The Architects of CIA Analysis
The Architects of CIA Analysis

A Field Guide to Surviving Trauma
A Field Guide to Surviving Trauma

Kilowatt of Wrath: Revenge and Assassinations via Secret Cooperation
Kilowatt of Wrath: Revenge and Assassinations via Secret Cooperation

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The Best National Security Gossip

YOU’LL NEVER GUESS WHAT WE FOUND IN THE LATEST EPSTEIN DOCUMENT DUMP - The Cipher Brief. No, thankfully there are no invitations to island getaways or dinner parties with the former prince currently known as Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor. But for reasons we don’t entirely understand, the 3.5 million documents released on Friday include news summaries that had been produced for senior executives at places like the FBI or intelligence community inspector general offices. And if you search the archives, buried in some of those news summaries are snippets of Cipher Brief opinion pieces (totally unrelated to Epstein.) The Cipher [...] More

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Events

Live Events

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

Join us for the third annual Cipher Brief Honors Dinner, the evening of March 13, 2026. This Black-Tie event is invite only, please apply here for a [...] More

Upcoming: 13 March, 2026

Podcasts

State Secrets

From cyber vulnerabilities to supply chain risk, Cipher Brief Expert and former National Intelligence Manager for Counterintelligence Sandrea Hwang tells State Secrets Podcast host Suzanne Kelly why modern national security threats are no longer distant or abstract and why protecting data, infrastructure, and innovation now requires whole-of-society cooperation.

Cover Stories: Spies, Books & Entertainment


David McCloskey, former CIA Analyst turned novelist is out with his fourth book, The Persian, about an Iranian dentist who is recruited by Mossad to take on a dangerous mission inside Iran. Cover Stories Host Suzanne Kelly digs in on how McCloskey’s real-life Intelligence background fueled his latest novel, and discovers a few of McCloskey’s own secrets along the way.