Every week, I share bold ideas and cold analyses drawn from the world of intelligence - intertwined with media, business and geopolitics - directly to your inbox.
Intelligence, power and influence
decoding the "Grey Zone" with Oriane Cohen

I’m Oriane.
Ex-HUMINT operative (=spy).
Ex-journalist.
Now entrepreneur - or something like it. God forgave... but institutions didn’t. Before anything: I’m a free electron. I don’t "belong". I observe, I connect, I disrupt. I think, unthink, reframe. I move through the grey zone, and help others see in it.
This site is my home on the internet.
Part library, part lab.
It’s a map of my mind: thoughts, tools, reflections, analyses, tensions, and questions. He're you'll learn how to:
- Read the room and people, to decode complex hidden dynamics
- Master negotiation and persuasion skills using elicitation techniques
- Sharpen your critical and analytical thinking skills
- Expand your global influence and leadership
- Strengthen your security, identify human risk easily
Why join the Grey Zone membership?
#1: Membership allows you to leverage MY time and expertise, and save you THOUSANDS of hours.
I've spent over a decade mastering strategic intelligence and human behavior (and ever-learning!). Thousands of hours of fieldwork and analysis are distilled into sharp, actionable insights you can immediately apply.
#2: Access exclusive strategic resources.
Receive tools, techniques, and frameworks that I personally use and trust. Skip trial and error - direct access to resources proven to elevate your leadership, negotiation, and decision-making skills.
#3: You increase you "return on experience"
The insights you gain will enrich your thinking... forever, providing returns that money can't buy. My articles, essays, and reflections trigger intellectual breakthroughs that permanently shift your perspective. If you're here counting pennies, you're in the wrong place.
If you’re new, start here. It will make the rest clearer.
they say it better...
Latest issues

Why the East studies power, and why the West... hides from it
A comparative dissection of power consciousness across civilizations. This is not about East vs. West. It’s about lucidity vs. denial. The word power makes people uncomfortable in the West.

How NVIDIA and strategic minerals meet in the Grey Zone
NVIDIA has quietly become the single most consequential company on Earth. Let me explain. 1. NVIDIA is the engine of AI OpenAI, Meta, Tesla, Amazon, Azure, Google Cloud, Microsoft... they

In the mind of a Grey Zone Operator (2/2)
Following the conversation with Kenneth Dekleva, the discussion (in my mind) did not stop. I wanted to deepen it. Grey Zone Operators represent an "extraordinary" psychological profile. Extraordinary.

In the mind of a Grey Zone operator w/ Kenneth Dekleva (1/2)
Meet Kenneth Dekleva. A psychiatrist, a former senior US Dept of State diplomat, a geopolitical risk analyst, a Salzburg global fellow, a senior fellow at the George HW Bush Foundation

Language as a weapon and the danger of "jargon", as defined by Alex Karp (Palantir's CEO)
Language is the most powerful tool humans have ever created. It is also the most dangerous. From intelligence operations to corporate politics, from spiritual dogma to media warfare, words shape
Techniques to catch a lie
Have you ever caught someone in a lie? It's this unique moment when you reveal the fragile threads of deceit. I'll give you some tips to
India-Pakistan 2025: cognitive warfare at a turning point
The recent escalation between India and Pakistan following the deadly attack in Pahalgam is not another chapter in their historic rivalry... It signals something deeper... and disturbing in its timing
I used the word "regime" and did not expect this reaction...
A few days ago, I wrote a LinkedIn post about Trump and MBS's meeting. At some point, I used the word "regime". I used the term

George Soros: the theory of reflexivity or how your perceptions shape reality (part 2)
After an introduction and my reflections on Soros' life and past, I want to introduce you to a central element of his philosophy - the theory of reflexivity. In
How to write a GOOD intelligence report
Writing a good intelligence report is all about CLARITY. No fancy words, no complicated structure. If you are a decision maker, and receive a long report, full of fancy words,

"Never discuss religion, politics, money or sex."
Who exactly came up with this absurdity? In certain societies, the obsession with silence around these 4 pillars of human existence borders on insanity. I remember someone taught me this

Trump, MBS and the "titans": a day we should not forget.
I did not plan to write this one tonight, but... Something deeply significant happened in Riyadh on May 13, 2025. It was much more than a diplomatic summit or a
The Grey Zone
Intelligence, influence and power - by Oriane Cohen.