Asia-Pacific Leadership Network

What Asia-Pacific Leadership Network does

Asia-Pacific Leadership Network (APLN) is a Seoul-headquartered non-profit policy research think tank dedicated to nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament in the Asia-Pacific region. The organization operates as a member-driven network of over 100 former political, diplomatic, and military leaders, senior government officials, and scholars from 18 countries. Its core deliverables are research publications and convening products: Policy Briefs, Special Reports, The Nuclear Memo (a quarterly tracker of nuclear developments in the Asia-Pacific), Commentaries, Video Analysis (including the 'Talking Nuclear' series), and Weekly Newsletters. APLN runs an active portfolio of research projects covering Asia-Pacific Strategic Risks (joint with the European Leadership Network), Nuclear Order, Maritime Incidents and Escalation (joint with VERTIC), Advancing Nuclear Fail-Safe, the Asia Dialogue on China-US Relations, Voices from Pacific Island Countries, and Nuclear Weapon Use Risk Reduction.

APLN does not sell products or services and generates revenue exclusively through grants and project funding from government agencies and political foundations. Documented funders include the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the United States Department of State, and Heinrich Böll Stiftung. Its go-to-market centers on thought leadership and high-level convening — workshops, roundtables, forums, and collaborations such as the Jeju Forum and the Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on AI and Nuclear War. Distribution is multi-channel: a public website (apln.network), weekly email newsletters, media partnerships with outlets including Korea Times, Springer Nature, and Global Asia journal, and event-based engagement with member principals and partner organizations.

The organization's reach spans 18 Asia-Pacific countries, with named member participation including former ROK Presidential Adviser Chung-in Moon (Vice Chair), ICAN's Melissa Parke, Tong Zhao, Tatsujiro Suzuki, and HMGS Palihakkara. APLN was previously known as the Asia-Pacific Leadership Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament. The organization is governed by a board structure with an international advisory board and a Seoul-based Secretariat, with no disclosed parent entity, subsidiaries, or external equity ownership.

Name

Asia-Pacific Leadership Network

Legal name

Asia-Pacific Leadership Network

Website

https://apln.network

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

APLN is a Seoul-based non-profit policy research network of 100+ former leaders, senior officials, and scholars from 18 Asia-Pacific countries, producing nuclear non-proliferation research, policy briefs, and convening senior stakeholders on regional security.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research and Think Tank Services

NAICS

International Affairs (928120), National Security and International Affairs (928)

SIC

International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Peace, Security & Arms Control Organizations (BPADAAAF)

Keywords

• Nuclear non-proliferation research
• Disarmament policy analysis
• Strategic risk assessment
• Track II diplomacy
• Regional security think tank

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: APLN receives funding from government agencies and foundations to support its research projects and operational activities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

APLN is a policy research and advocacy network that produces publications, convenes expert dialogues, and runs research projects on nuclear non-proliferation, disarmament, and regional security in the Asia-Pacific. It offers free access to policy briefs, special reports, commentaries, newsletters, and video analysis, and organizes workshops and roundtables for senior policymakers, former officials, and scholars from 18 countries. Its membership program connects over 100 leaders across the region to facilitate Track II diplomacy on nuclear risk reduction.

Product overview

The Asia-Pacific Leadership Network (APLN) is a policy research think tank focused on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament in the Asia-Pacific region. The organization operates as a platform providing research publications and analysis products including Policy Briefs, The Nuclear Memo (quarterly publication), Special Reports, Commentaries, and Video Analysis. APLN conducts ongoing research projects such as the Asia-Pacific Strategic Risks Project (in collaboration with the European Leadership Network), Nuclear Order in the Asia-Pacific Project, Maritime Incidents and Escalation Project (with VERTIC), Advancing Nuclear Fail-Safe Project, and the Asia Dialogue on China-US Relations Project. The network offers membership to over 100 leaders across 18 countries and organizes events and workshops on nuclear security topics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Policy Briefs Analytical policy briefs addressing nuclear non-proliferation, regional security, and strategic risk reduction in the Asia-Pacific, produced for policymakers and experts.
• The Nuclear Memo Quarterly publication that tracks, analyses and summarises nuclear developments shaping the Asia-Pacific security environment, produced for policymakers, experts, and the public.
• Special Reports In-depth analytical reports on nuclear order, strategic risks, and regional security issues in the Asia-Pacific, produced for policymakers and experts.
• Network Membership Program Membership network of over 100 former political, diplomatic, and military leaders, senior government officials, and scholars from 18 Asia-Pacific countries, convened for Track II dialogue on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.
• Events and Workshops Workshops, roundtables, forums, and conferences convened on nuclear non-proliferation and regional security topics, including the Jeju Forum partnership.
• Asia-Pacific Strategic Risks Project Ongoing research project convening government officials, experts, and practitioners to discuss proliferation challenges and policy solutions, in collaboration with the European Leadership Network.
• Nuclear Order in the Asia-Pacific Project Research project exploring evolving perceptions of nuclear weapons in national and regional security, addressing US extended deterrence, China's nuclear modernisation, and North Korea's nuclear program.
• Maritime Incidents and Escalation in the Asia-Pacific Project Joint project with VERTIC identifying risks of dangerous maritime incidents and escalation, exploring confidence-building measures for stability in Asia-Pacific waters.
• Advancing Nuclear Fail-Safe in the Asia-Pacific Project Research project highlighting the benefits of independent, internal fail-safe reviews in nuclear-armed states to strengthen safeguards against accidental or unauthorized nuclear weapon use.
• Asia Dialogue on China-US Relations Project Dialogue project examining the implications of China-US relations for regional security and strategic stability in the Asia-Pacific.

Quantifiable outcome

• Produced multiple joint reports with European Leadership Network on strategic risks
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and notable.

• Heinrich Böll StiftungsupportingOthers · 21 October 2024German political foundation that supported and hosted the roundtable on 'Regional Perspectives on Nuclear Armament in South Korea' with experts from South Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Indonesia, and Philippines.
• European Leadership Network (ELN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership on the Asia-Pacific Strategic Risks project, producing joint policy briefs and reports comparing Australian, Japanese, South Korean, and UK perceptions of strategic risks. Joint publications include 'Asia-Pacific Flashpoints' and 'Balancing Deterrence with Assurances'.
• VERTIC (Verification Research, Training and Information Centre)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint project on Maritime Incidents and Escalation in the Asia-Pacific. Produced joint feasibility study reports and scoping papers on preventing dangerous maritime incidents. Project supported by the United States Department of State.
• Global Nobel Laureates AssemblynotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerAPLN members Manpreet Sethi, Melissa Parke, Tong Zhao, and Tatsujiro Suzuki participated in the Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on AI and Nuclear War, discussing artificial intelligence, nuclear risk, and disarmament.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Arms Control Association: A US-based nonprofit producing policy analysis and advocacy on arms control and non-proliferation. Highly comparable in mission and outputs (briefings, reports, policy commentary) to APLN though focused on US/global agenda rather than Asia-Pacific specifically.
• International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN): A Nobel Peace Prize-winning campaign coalition advocating for the prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons. Overlaps tightly with APLN on disarmament advocacy, though operating more as a civil-society coalition than a Track II elite network.
• European Leadership Network: A direct peer organization based in Europe that convenes senior former officials and experts on strategic and nuclear security. APLN is its explicit Asia-Pacific counterpart and the two operate joint projects (Asia-Pacific Strategic Risks), making the comparability very high across mission, model, and product.
• VERTIC (Verification Research, Training and Information Centre): A direct peer in the nuclear verification and risk-reduction niche, with whom APLN runs the Maritime Incidents and Escalation project. Their missions around nuclear threat reduction, technical confidence-building, and engagement with governments map closely to APLN's work.

Broad incumbents

• Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI): An internationally recognized research institute producing data and analysis on arms control, nuclear weapons, and regional security. Comparable as a research authority on nuclear non-proliferation, though broader in scope than APLN.
• Royal United Services Institute (RUSI): A UK defence and security think tank producing policy research with substantial Asia-Pacific and nuclear deterrence coverage. Comparable as a senior-official-engaging policy research organization, though with a far broader security remit.
• Council on Foreign Relations: A major US foreign-policy think tank with global reach, a membership model of senior policymakers, and published analysis on nuclear and Asia-Pacific security. Comparable as a high-credential membership-driven policy forum, though vastly larger and broader in scope.
• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: A large, established global-affairs think tank with substantive Asia-Pacific and nuclear-policy programs. It is comparable as an incumbent policy-research organization but operates a much broader international-affairs portfolio than APLN's nuclear niche.

Emerging players

• Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: A nonprofit media and policy organization focused on nuclear risk and existential threats. Comparable in mission and audience (policymakers, media, engaged public), and more prominent globally, but operating more as a journal and Doomsday Clock publisher than a regional convening network.
• Federation of American Scientists: A nonprofit policy organization working on nuclear security and emerging technology risks. Comparable overlap on nuclear risk and emerging-technology topics intersecting with APLN's recent AI-nuclear convening activity.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aplnofficial

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Asia-Pacific Leadership Network