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MI5 chief in first joint public appearance with heads of Five Eyes spy agencies

Ken McCallum will speak alongside counterparts from the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand amid warnings about foreign state threats to businesses.

Margaret Davis
Tuesday 17 October 2023 07:35 EDT
MI5 Director General Ken McCallum is set to make a groundbreaking joint appearance with four other intelligence chiefs in California on Tuesday (Danny Lawson/PA)
MI5 Director General Ken McCallum is set to make a groundbreaking joint appearance with four other intelligence chiefs in California on Tuesday (Danny Lawson/PA) (PA Archive)

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The head of MI5 will make his first joint public appearance with counterparts from the Five Eyes intelligence services amid warnings about the threats to UK businesses from foreign states.

Ken McCallum will appear alongside fellow spy chiefs from the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand at an event hosted by the FBI later on Tuesday.

He said: “The UK is seeing a sharp rise in aggressive attempts by other states to steal competitive advantage.

The stakes are now incredibly high on emerging technologies; states which lead the way in areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing and synthetic biology will have the power to shape all our futures

Ken McCallum, MI5

“It’s the same across all five of our countries.

“The stakes are now incredibly high on emerging technologies; states which lead the way in areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing and synthetic biology will have the power to shape all our futures.

“We all need to be aware, and respond, before it’s too late.”

All five figures are set to take part in a fireside chat with former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice to discuss threats to businesses across their home nations.

They met at the start of the first Emerging Technology and Securing Innovation Security Summit in Silicon Valley, which will also be attended by business chiefs and academics.

Australian Security Intelligence Organisation director-general Mike Burgess called the summit “an unprecedented response to an unprecedented threat”.

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