At least six Irish people, including one member of the Oireachtas, have been invited to an upcoming event in Wicklow organised by a network co-founded by controversial billionaire investor Peter Thiel.
The event, hosted by the Dialog group, is due to take place in The Powerscourt Hotel in Wicklow in August.
Dialog counts international politicians, technology executives, military leaders and financial investors among its members.
It has been variously described as secretive and elitist, while critics have linked it to Mr Thiel's nationalistic or libertarian political viewpoint.
Mr Thiel is a major backer of Donald Trump and the co-founder of Palantir, an AI company which has worked with ICE, the Israeli military, and US military. Palantir is used to analyse vast amounts of data for various purposes, including reportedly to identify targets for military attacks.
In recent days, a report by US outlet Wired revealed the details of invitees to the Powerscourt event were accessible through an incorrectly secured part of the group's website.
The report of the planned event triggered calls for its cancellation from the People Before Profit party.
Prime Time obtained a copy of details of some of those invited to attend the Wicklow event and contacted Irish individuals listed for comment. Some said they were not now planning to attend, others refused to comment.
Two are senior lawyers working in technology law, while another works internationally as a barrister. A senior public servant working in the energy sector is also listed in the records.
Also listed is an Irish content writer, and independent senator, Lynn Ruane.
It is unclear if all listed accepted the invite.
Senator Ruane told Prime Time she had planned to participate but has since withdrawn, having learned details in recent days about the Dialog group.
"I thought it was a space where organisers bring people together to discuss difficult topics," she said during a phone call. "I asked them remove me the other day. They said there was leak of information."
Senator Ruane said she had viewed it as an opportunity to better understand the technology sector as part of her role as a member of the Oireachtas AI committee.
"I thought I'd get an insight there and meet people in that industry," she said, adding she was also invited to a Dialog event in the UAE in 2025.
"I was invited last year, it was in Abu Dhabi and I said no because I was taking a stance on that about Sudan, that's how naive I was [about the group]."
The UAE backs militia groups in Sudan which have been accused of human rights abuses.
Senator Ruane said she had been originally invited to Dialog through a personal recommendation from a friend she knows through her time studying in Trinity College and was not aware of the group's history when she accepted.
However, she said after reading in recent days about the group she has formed the view that the event was not politically neutral.
"In agreeing to attend, I did not maintain my usual standards of due diligence. I take full responsibility for this error of judgement. It has reinforced the importance of thorough scrutiny," she added in a statement provided on Thursday evening.
Senator Lynn Ruane said she no longer plans to attend the gathering
The documents list 222 invitees for this year's gathering, including senior figures from companies such as Google, Anthropic, OpenAI, YouTube and Lockheed Martin.
Current and former politicians from Japan and Pakistan, the UK, Norway and Denmark, as well as Republican and Democrat representatives from the US, are also listed.
Also included are senior US and NATO military officers, officials working in US intelligence and the Israeli government, and Afghan resistance groups opposed to the Taliban.
Many other people on the list work in AI or venture capital. Also included are academics, actors, media figures, and so-called conservative 'think-tankers.'
One is a recently retired American labour movement leader.
It is unclear if all listed accepted the invite. The Irish public servant working in the energy sector who is listed responded to Prime Time only to say: "I have never attended Dialog. I will not be attending [the] Dialog event in August."
A person who previously attended Dialog events rejected the suggestion that the gatherings promote a particular ideology.
They described the event as a forum for highly successful people from a wide range of professional and political backgrounds for off-the-record discussions.
The records seen by Prime Time contain details of discussion sessions planned for the gathering. Titles include 'Navigating WWIII' and 'How to Build a Cult.' Other session titles are less esoteric, with titles such as 'The Celtic Tiger', 'Disinformation & Deepfakes' and 'AI in Higher Education.'
The former attendee also commented on Peter Thiel, saying in their view "95% of attendees" would be less likely to attend if he were involved directly in events.
They said the…
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