NYU’s Development Research Institute unites research, dialogue, and strategy to empower citizens, build resilient nations, and foster allied collaboration. With its Wahba Initiative, the Financial Access Initiative, Africa House, and others, DRI advances solutions at the crossroads of development, infrastructure, trade, technology, and geopolitics.
2026 NYU DRI Annual Conference | International Development: Which way now?
2026 NYU DRI Annual Conference | International Development: Which way now?
Please join us on Monday, April 20, 4:00 – 5:15 p.m. ET, for a panel discussion on International Development: Which way now? at the 2026 NYU DRI Annual Conference. Crises can be moments of honest reckoning and new directions, and the international development sector is facing an unprecedented crisis today. How did we get here, […]
Learn MoreWhy America Struggles to Compete on Global Infrastructure
Why America Struggles to Compete on Global Infrastructure
The United States has awakened to the reality that supporting international infrastructure is no longer just a development issue. Infrastructure—digital networks, energy systems, and ports—is now central to strategic competition. Washington has responded. The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has expanded its authorities, in line with recommendations we advanced. The Export-Import Bank of the […]
Learn MoreThe AI Race Will Be Won in the Market
The AI Race Will Be Won in the Market
Washington has optimized its artificial intelligence (AI) strategy around frontier capabilities: model scale, compute density, and semiconductor controls. Those matter, but address only one side of the equation. The strategic contest is no longer about the most capable model. It is about whose AI stack achieves global deployment. AI is shifting from frontier research capability […]
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About DRI
NYU’s Development Research Institute and the Wahba Initiative with their partners, the Financial Access Initiative, Africa House, and the Center for Technology and Economic Development, bridge academic research and policy action to address today’s global challenges. From development to deterrence, we equip leaders with insight that spans economics, infrastructure, technology and alliances.
Development That Delivers Opportunity
Inclusive development underpins economic security. Advancing financial access, human capital, institutional trust, and entrepreneurship strengthens prosperity and expands opportunity in every region.
Learn MoreStrategic Infrastructure Finance
Infrastructure determines power—linking partners, powering compute, and enabling the flow of goods, energy, and data. The goal: systems that deploy quickly, attract capital, and expand choice.
Learn MoreProductive Capacity
Productive capacity must be resilient and scalable. Targeted production, diversified sourcing, and trade expansion reduce vulnerability while sustaining innovation, industrial strength, and competitiveness.
Learn MoreAI as a Systems Race
AI leadership is decisive. Open societies must compete across chips, compute, cloud, energy, data, and applications to ensure trusted, scalable systems prevail.
Learn MoreScaling Systems Through Alliances
To compete at scale and speed, alliances must evolve—aligning across technology, finance, production, and governance to convert shared capabilities into sustained advantage.
Learn MoreEvidence-Based Practice in Development Policy
Effective development policy must be grounded in rigorous evidence, not assumptions. Translating research into actionable strategies that work in real-world contexts helps governments, institutions, and communities make informed decisions that deliver measurable and lasting impact.
Learn MoreFinancial Access in a Growing World
The Financial Access Initiative conducts rigorous research on how low-income households use financial tools like savings, credit, insurance, and payments. Its work informs policies and product design that expand meaningful financial inclusion worldwide.
Learn MoreInsights
Timely analysis and commentary on development, geoeconomics, technology, and trade—helping decision-makers and scholars navigate the shifting landscape of global power and prosperity.
Events
High-impact convenings that connect researchers, policymakers, and global partners to shape coordinated responses to shared development and strategic challenges.
Experts
Meet the scholars, fellows, and practitioners advancing DRI’s work across domains. Their expertise spans academia, government, and industry.
Regions
Explore how development trends and strategic pressures intersect in key regions—from the Indo-Pacific to Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas.