ComplexChaos Leverages AI to Foster Consensus and Accelerate Climate Negotiations
Key Points
- ComplexChaos combines Google’s Habermas Machine with OpenAI’s ChatGPT to create AI‑facilitated consensus tools.
- The platform generates questions, sets goals, and summarizes long documents for group discussions.
- A trial with delegates from nine African nations showed up to a 60% reduction in coordination time.
- 91% of participants said the AI helped reveal perspectives they would have otherwise missed.
- The technology aims to shorten regrouping phases that often stall international negotiations.
- Founders see applications in corporate strategic planning and other large‑scale decision processes.
- ComplexChaos is pitching its solution to tech firms, consultancies, and other organizations handling complex collaborations.
ComplexChaos, a startup founded by Tomy Lorsch and Maya Ben Dror, is developing AI tools to help groups reach consensus more quickly. By integrating Google’s Habermas Machine and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the platform generates questions, outlines goals, and summarizes lengthy documents. In a trial with young delegates from nine African nations preparing for climate talks in Bonn, participants reported up to a 60% reduction in coordination time and 91% said the AI helped reveal missed perspectives. The founders see broader applications for corporate strategic planning and other large‑scale negotiations.
AI‑Driven Facilitation for Consensus Building
ComplexChaos was founded by Tomy Lorsch and Maya Ben Dror with the aim of using artificial intelligence to help groups find common ground. The company’s platform combines Google’s Habermas Machine—a language model designed to generate consensus statements that reflect both majority and minority viewpoints—with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Together, these tools create tailored questions, set conversation goals, and condense extensive documents, acting as a virtual facilitator for collaborative decision‑making.
Real‑World Test with African Delegates
The first major test of the technology involved young delegates from nine African nations who were preparing for climate‑related negotiations at a United Nations campus in Bonn, Germany. Participants used the AI‑powered tool to coordinate their positions before entering formal talks. The experience yielded measurable benefits: delegates reported up to a 60% reduction in the time required to align their positions, and 91% said the AI helped them see perspectives they would have otherwise missed.
Addressing the Bottlenecks in International Negotiations
ComplexChaos highlights a persistent challenge in multilateral negotiations—when blocs receive new information, they often need to pause proceedings to regroup, renegotiate, and reposition. This process creates friction and delays. By providing rapid, AI‑facilitated consensus generation, the platform aims to shorten these regrouping phases, allowing negotiations to proceed more smoothly.
Potential Beyond Climate Talks
Lorsch and Ben Dror see broader applications for their technology. They note that many large organizations spend months on strategic planning, a process that involves back‑and‑forth negotiations across time zones and teams. The founders suggest that the same AI‑driven facilitation could streamline corporate strategic planning, consulting engagements, and any scenario that requires coordinated decision‑making among dispersed groups.
Future Outlook
While the initial focus has been on climate negotiations, ComplexChaos is actively pitching its tool to technology companies, large consultancies, and other entities that manage complex, multi‑party processes. The founders remain optimistic that AI can not only accelerate negotiations but also improve the quality of outcomes by ensuring that diverse viewpoints are considered and integrated.