Fathom

"The time for admiring problems has come and gone. The time to generate the energy and resources to tackle them has arrived." Insights from The Ashby Workshops 2026: Designing Our Collective AI Future. ⬇️ Full report in the comments.

Read the full report: fathom.org/insights/desig…

What happens when an AI chatbot is linked to youth self-harm and there's actually an accountability structure in place? We ran that simulation at the @IASEAIorg conference in Paris. Participants played the government, an IVO, and an AI company. Each had different information. No one had the full picture. The most surprising finding: the AI company didn't default to damage control. With IVOs in the system, the incentive shifted from avoidance to engagement. What surprised you about our findings?

Read the full report: fathom.org/insights/desig…

New report: "Who Watches the Watchers" We brought 15 experts from 6 countries to UNESCO House in Paris and spent a full day stress-testing how Independent Verification Organizations would actually work in practice. They played government regulators, an IVO, and an AI company. What we found 👇

🔗 Link to the full agenda: philanthropyforum.org/2026agenda

Today, our Co-Founder & President, @BriTreece21 joins Tom Pravda and @sarah_e_is at the @gpforg 2026 Leaders Summit to discuss how philanthropic capital can act as a first mover in building governance infrastructure. Periods of geopolitical rupture often create the conditions for institutional change — but solutions rarely emerge in the moment of crisis itself. They must already exist, tested and ready, when the system becomes open to change. Early bets help cultivate practical solutions before the political window opens.

@Fathom_org is doing some of the most thoughtful work on how to build an AI evaluations ecosystem that supports both accountability and innovation. Grateful to have joined the IVO TTX at @IASEAIorg in Paris last month. Report is full of useful insights.

📸 Photography courtesy of the International Association for Safe & Ethical AI, @SameerAlDoumy

What we learned: ➡️ The IVO Framework Changes Incentive Structures in Productive Ways ➡️ Authority Without Enforcement Is Theater ➡️ Definitions Are Load-Bearing ➡️ The Science of Evaluation Is Ready ➡️ Accountability Infrastructure Turns Failure into Success ➡️ The Best Path Forward is Action

New @Fathom_org report: “Who Watches the Watchers” How do we build a governance infrastructure for AI that actually works, that keeps pace with the technology, produces meaningful safety outcomes, and scales beyond what governments can do alone? We brought that question to a full-day workshop at the International Association for Safe and Ethical AI (@IASEAIorg) conference in Paris. 🧵

Learn more: ivo.fathom.org

A new model for AI governance is gaining momentum. The Independent Oversight Marketplace: where expert-led Independent Verification Organizations (IVOs) verify AI meets real safety standards. Voluntary. Market-driven. Built for trust.

📄 fathom.org/ashby-report

In February, The Ashby Workshops 2026 brought together leaders and prominent voices from government, technology, academia, civil society, and philanthropy, as well as sector experts in education, healthcare, finance, national security, and more for three days of facilitated conversation in Middleburg, VA. But the conversations weren't just about surfacing challenges, they were about what comes next. From dialogue to action: ➡️ Build independent verification infrastructure ➡️ Treat child safety and fraud prevention as table stakes ➡️ Prepare workers and institutions in parallel ➡️ Direct AI toward high-impact public benefits ➡️ Create legal protections for safety research Read the full report 👇

We were honored to join @JoinFAI’s amicus brief. The brief makes a powerful argument that the DoW does not have the unfettered ability to harm American companies.