Boston Global Forum
Harvard University Loeb House
17 Quincy Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts
May 1, 2026 | 8:30 AM – 2:00 PM
Program Agenda
8:15 – 8:30 AM
Registration and Welcome Coffee
Celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the United States and Honor Presentations
8:30 – 8:40 AM
Opening Remarks Thomas E. Patterson
8:40 – 8:50 AM
Presentation of the Book America at 250: A Beacon for the AI Age
Introduction to AIWS Trust Infrastructure Nguyen Anh Tuan
Vision, framework, and implementation pathway for trust in the AI Age
8:50 – 9:10 AM
Presentation of the 2026 World Leader for Peace and Security Award Honoring the Leaders of the United States and the American People
Remarks by: Governor Michael S. Dukakis; Nguyen Anh Tuan; Thomas E. Patterson
Remarks delivered by Thomas E. Patterson on behalf of Governor Michael S. Dukakis, Nguyen Anh Tuan, and Thomas E. Patterson
Symbolic Representatives Receiving the Award: Jason Carter, representing the moral leadership legacy of America through President Jimmy Carter; Vint Cerf, representing the creativity, innovation, and civic spirit of the American people in the digital age
Special Remarks: Jason Carter — America as a Moral Beacon: Continuing the Carter Legacy of Peace, Human Rights, and Trusted Innovation in the Age of AI; Vint Cerf (by video) — Building Information Trust for the AI Age
9:10 – 9:30 AM
Recognition of America 250: AI Pioneers Presented by Nguyen Anh Tuan
Recipients in person: Cynthia Dwork; Alex Pentland; Regina Barzilay; Cynthia Breazeal; Herbert Lin
Acceptance Speech by Cynthia Dwork On behalf of the Honorees of America 250: AI Pioneers
From Differential Privacy to Trust Infrastructure: Building Trustworthy AI for Democracy
Main Panel
9:30 – 11:00 AM
AIWS Trust Infrastructure for the AI Age
Co-Moderators: Thomas E. Patterson and Alex Pentland
Alex Pentland – AI Pioneers — Building Human-Centered Trust Infrastructure for the AI Age
Herbert Lin – AI Pioneers — From Influence Operations to Information Trust: Building Resilience in the AI Age
Regina Barzilay – AI Pioneers — Trustworthy AI in Healthcare and High-Stakes Human Systems
Cynthia Breazeal – AI Pioneers — Human-Centered AI and Social Trust in the Age of Intelligent Systems
Daphne Koller – AI Pioneers (by video) — From Probabilistic AI to Trusted Information Ecosystems
Q&A
11:00 – 11:15 AM
Coffee Break
Beacon Declaration and Beacon Process
11:15 – 11:55 AM
Beacon Declaration and Beacon Process
Founding AIWS Trust Infrastructure and AIWS Lumina
Presented by Ramu Damodaran
Commitments to Accompany and Implement the Beacon Declaration
Yasuhide Nakayama (by video) — Member of the National Diet of Japan; Director, LDP Global South
Vu Dang Vinh (by video) — Vietnam Report
Roland Schatz — Media Tenor
Bui Ngoc Duc — Dat Xanh
Commitments to Accompany and Advance AIWS Lumina
Le Hoa (by video) — Cao Tra Muc Nhan
Special Video from Nha Trang in Tribute to America 250
Thu Pham
11:55 AM – 12:00 PM
Concluding Remarks — Nguyen Anh Tuan
12:30 – 2:00 PM
Luncheon Dialogue: Storytelling, Democracy, and America at 250
Hollywood, Civic Imagination, and the Future of Freedom in the AI Age
Harvard Faculty Club
Moderator: Gita Pullapilly
Panelists: Jason Carter; Don Lee
This special luncheon dialogue will explore how storytelling, film, and cultural leadership can sustain democratic values, deepen civic imagination, and strengthen public trust in an era shaped by artificial intelligence. The discussion will also explore the emerging concept and criteria of Films for Humanity in the Age of AI within the vision of AIWS Film Park, including the kinds of films and storytelling that should be encouraged in the AI Age: works that affirm human dignity, strengthen empathy, promote truth and responsibility, inspire reconciliation, and contribute to the cultural foundations of freedom and democratic life.
Concept Note
On the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the United States of America, the Boston Global Forum will convene the conference America at 250: A Beacon for the AI Age at Harvard University’s Loeb House on May 1, 2026. The conference honors the enduring ideals of America — liberty, democracy, innovation, peace, security, and service to humanity — while looking ahead to how America can continue to serve as a beacon of trusted, human-centered leadership in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.
Grounded in the spirit of the book America at 250: A Beacon for the AI Age, co-authored by Governor Michael S. Dukakis and Nguyen Anh Tuan, the conference brings together honor presentations, AI pioneer recognition, expert discussion, the Beacon Declaration and Beacon Process, and a luncheon dialogue on storytelling and democratic culture. It advances two important pillars for the AI Age: AIWS Trust Infrastructure and AIWS Lumina.
The conference has five main purposes:
- to celebrate America at 250 through the ideas and vision of the book;
- to present AIWS Trust Infrastructure as a practical framework for trust in the AI Age;
- to honor the leaders of the United States, the American people, and America 250: AI Pioneers;
- to launch a call to action and an implementation pathway through the Beacon Declaration and Beacon Process;
- and to highlight the role of storytelling, culture, and AIWS Lumina in sustaining democratic civilization in the AI Age.
A central feature of the conference is the presentation of the 2026 World Leader for Peace and Security Award, offered in honor of the leaders of the United States and the American people. The award will be received by Jason Carter and Vint Cerf as symbolic representatives. The conference will also recognize America 250: AI Pioneers, honoring distinguished pioneers whose work has helped shape the AI Age in service of humanity.
The main panel, AIWS Trust Infrastructure for the AI Age, co-moderated by Thomas E. Patterson and Alex Pentland, will feature leading honorees of America 250: AI Pioneers and explore trustworthy AI systems, trusted information, institutional resilience, healthcare, and human-centered design. The morning program will culminate in the Beacon Declaration and Beacon Process: Founding AIWS Trust Infrastructure and AIWS Lumina, followed by commitments from key partners to accompany and implement the vision.
A special luncheon dialogue on Storytelling, Democracy, and America at 250 will explore how film, narrative, and cultural leadership can strengthen freedom, dignity, empathy, and public trust in an era shaped by AI. In this way, the conference serves both as a tribute and as a call to action: to help shape a future in which trust, culture, and human responsibility remain at the center of the AI Age.
