Reflections on The Washington Post’s 2026 Building America Summit and the Future of Autonomous Weapons. Charlotte Griffin. Boston College.
Last Thursday, June 11, 2026, during my first week interning at Creative Investment Research, I had the distinct privilege to attend the Washington Post’s Building America Summit. The full-day event took place at the Post’s main offices in DC and served as the kickoff of the news outlet’s multi-media Building America initiative. During his introductory remarks, Matt Murray, executive editor of the Washington Post, remarked that the central question to be answered was “How America builds for the future that’s in front of us?” Those invited to tackle this question were leaders from both the public and private sectors, in the areas of defense, energy, manufacturing, education, and more. Across these various conversations, I noticed several core throughlines that came up time and time again. The most prolific of these topics was artificial intelligence and how to respond to our rapidly accelerating digital age. In all areas, these professionals were hyperaware of the importance o...