The Centre for the Governance of AI is seeking a Washington D.C.-based Research Scholar to support the career development of AI governance researchers and practitioner.
About the organisation
The Centre for the Governance of AI was founded to help humanity navigate the transition to a world with advanced AI. Their first research agenda, published in 2018, helped define and shape the nascent field of AI governance. Their team and affiliate community possess expertise in a wide variety of domains, including AI regulation, responsible development practices, compute governance, AI company corporate governance, US-China relations, and AI progress forecasting.
Brief description of the role
Research Scholar is a one-year visiting position. It is designed to support the career development of AI governance researchers and practitioners — as well as to offer them an opportunity to do high-impact work. In this round, we would especially like to highlight our interest in candidates who intend to focus on US policy and work primarily from Washington, DC.
Key roles and responsibilities
- As a Research Scholar, you will have freedom to pursue a wide range of styles of work. This could include conducting policy research, social science research, or relevant technical research; engaging with and advising policymakers; or starting and managing applied projects.
- Over the course of the year, you will deepen your understanding of the field, connect with a network of experts, and build your skills and professional profile, all within an institutional home that offers both flexibility and support.
- Although the UK is currently the largest focus of GovAI’s policy work, we have expanded our US policy engagement over the past year. We are now interested in expanding it further, potentially by building up a DC-based unit of the organisation.
- A DC-based Research Scholar could serve as a bridge between US policy conversations and other research happening at GovAI. They could also lead projects on US policy questions, such as: – What could sensible federal-level regulation of frontier AI look like? – Are US-led export controls likely to have their intended effects? – What state-level regulations are plausible – and how will they interact with regulatory activity at the federal level?
Experience and skills
For all candidates, we will look for:
- A strong interest in using their career to positively influence the lasting impact of artificial intelligence, in line with our organisation’s mission.
- Demonstrated ability to produce excellent work (typically research outputs) or achieve impressive results.
- Self-direction and proactivity.
- The ability to evaluate and prioritise projects on the basis of impact.
- A commitment to intellectual honesty and rigour.
- Receptiveness to feedback and commitment to self-improvement.
- Strong communication skills – Collaborativeness and motivation to help others succeed.
- Some familiarity with the field of AI governance.
- Some expertise in a domain that is relevant to AI governance.
- A compelling explanation of how the Research Scholar position may help them to have a large impact