I am Leo Hyams, Founder and Executive Director of the Cape Institute for Safe AI (CISAI). CISAI is a frontier technology hub based in Cape Town, South Africa, that is aimed at improving systemic resilience, coordination capability, and human empowerment, particularly in relation to advanced AI. Through this organisation, I have facilitated AI safety research that has been published at top academic AI conferences (AAAI, NeurIPS) and worked with institutions such as the UK AI Security Institute and the Cooperative AI Foundation.

My career in impact was sparked on a Vipassana meditation retreat, inspired by the life of the bodhisattva and the experience of bodhicitta. I have maintained a simple, yet dedicated mindfulness practice since 2018, and am also inspired by stoic philosophy.

I'm interested in building physical hubs that are conducive to radical innovation, such as the Bell Labs or the Santa Fe Institute. I'm also inspired by Solarpunk and Existential Hope as movements that attempt to paint positive visions of the future.