Ulrike Franke Keynote Speaker

Expert on European & German defence policy and the use of new technologies in warfare
Senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) think tank, based in Paris
Co-hosts the Sicherheitshalber Podcast, a highly successful German-language podcast on security and defence

Ulrike Franke's Biography

Dr. Ulrike Franke is an expert on European and German defence policy, and the use of new technologies in warfare. She is a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) think tank, based in Paris. Her areas of focus include German and European security and defence, the future of warfare, and the impact of new technologies such as drones and artificial intelligence on geopolitics and warfare.

Franke has published widely on these and other topics, and regularly appears as commentator in the English- German- and French-speaking media. She co-hosts the Sicherheitshalber Podcast, a highly successful German-language podcast on security and defence.

She holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Oxford – in her doctoral thesis, she studied the use of drones by western armed forces. She also holds a BA from Sciences Po Paris and a double summa cum laude MA degree from Sciences Po Paris and the University of St. Gallen.

Franke is a policy affiliate at the Governance of AI project at Oxford University’s Future of Humanity Institute. She teaches at Sciences Po Paris.

New technologies in warfare

The future of war

The role and impact of drones and artificial intelligence in warfare

German security and defence policy

European - and EU – common defence efforts

The war in Ukraine – current developments especially from a technological point of view

Franco-German defence cooperations

She sits at the forefront of European defence debate as a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, helping leaders understand how German and EU security choices will reshape deterrence, budgets and industrial strategy.
She translates the rapidly evolving future of warfare, from drones to AI-enabled targeting, into clear implications for national security, corporate risk and geopolitical stability.
She brings rare depth on drone warfare from Oxford doctoral research, giving audiences an evidence-based lens on how unmanned systems change escalation, accountability and battlefield advantage.
She delivers agenda-setting analysis across English, German and French media and co-hosts the Sicherheitshalber podcast, equipping audiences with timely, trusted insight on Europe’s security choices.
She bridges policy and technology through her affiliation with Oxford’s Governance of AI work and teaching at Sciences Po, helping decision-makers navigate how emerging military tech will redefine power and protection.