About the job

Job summary

The AI Safety Institute is the first state-backed organisation focused on advanced AI safety for the public interest.  We launched at the AI Safety Summit because we believe taking responsible action on this extraordinary technology requires a capable and empowered group of technical experts within government.

Our staff includes senior alumni from OpenAI, Google DeepMind, start-ups and the UK government, and ML professors from Oxford and Cambridge. We are now seeking to recruit highly motivated, excellent strategy and policy minds to help us progress the work of the institute.  This is a truly unique opportunity to help shape AI safety at an international level.

We have ambitious goals and need to move fast.

Develop and conduct evaluations on advanced AI systems
We will characterise safety-relevant capabilities, understand the safety and security of systems, and assess their societal impacts.

Drive foundational AI safety research
We will launch moonshot research projects and convene world-class external researchers.

Facilitate information exchange
We will establish clear information-sharing channels between the Institute and other national and international actors. These include stakeholders such as policymakers and international partners.

Job description

The postholder will be one of four Grade 6 roles within the Partnerships Division, which is responsible collectively for: international AI Safety protocols, international partnerships, disclosure and the State of the Science report.   

It will be critical to work closely as a senior team, and across your respective line management chains, to move workstreams forward collectively.

You will also work closely with the division’s Deputy Director and other G6s, as part of the International Division Senior Leadership Team, to deliver an open, friendly, organised, efficient and empowered culture, and continue to strive for a high standard of excellence.

Responsibilities:

Your team will be responsible for AI Safety Protocols policy within the AI Safety Institute. Specifically, the team will be responsible for:

• Developing proposals for subsequent agreements at AI Safety Summits, building on the Chairs Statement on Safety Testing from Bletchley Park, informed by developments and research from the technical team in the AI Safety Institute
• Drafting, with input from legal and other countries and partners, any protocols to be pursued, and inputting into protocol proposals from other countries.
• Leading engagement internationally and with other key partners, including AI Policy counterparts, to bring proposals from drafts to final agreed form
• Leading strategy work across AISI on long-term AI Safety goals internationally
• Leading a small and high performing team, maintaining resilience in a team that often comes under pressure
• Ensuring strong join up with developments in standards on AI Safety

Person specification

Essential Criteria

Essential skills experience for these roles include:

• Strong strategy skills, with a flair for big picture, creative thinking
• Excellent policy skills, with a strength in drilling into the detail and gaining a detailed, in depth, mastery of a complex issue, as well as developing options and advice based on this understanding
• Experience of leading high performing, supported teams in a fast-paced environment
• Excellent ability to build and sustain credible, trusted relationships, including with a wide variety of international partners, businesses and academic/civil society stakeholders
• Expertise in frontier AI safety and/or demonstrable experience of upskilling quickly in a complex new policy area
• Demonstrable experience working to a high standard, at pace, over a sustained period of time
• Desirable skills and experience for these roles include:
• Experience with international negotiations and diplomacy

Experience in AI or another area of Science and Technology

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £64,660, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology contributes £17,458 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

You will also be asked to provide a personal statement (1000 word max) explaining why you want this role, setting out why you consider yourself suitable, with particular reference to meeting the essential criteria and behaviours listed below with relevant examples.

Behaviour: Seeing the Big Picture (Lead Behaviour)

Behaviour: Communicating and Influencing

Behaviour: Delivering at Pace

Behaviour: Leadership

Applicants must also complete an online CV outlining your qualifications, history, and skills which will be assessed and scored.

Should we receive a high number of applications then we may decide to only sift on the lead behaviour only.

Sift and interview dates

We will try and offer as much flexibility as we can, but it may not be possible to offer alternative dates for assessments or interviews.

You are therefore asked to note the below timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process, in order to meet the dates given.

Sift dates: w/c 04/03/2024

Interview dates: w/c 11/03/2024

Interview Location: MS Teams.

Candidates are asked to note the above timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process.

Further Information

Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply, but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.

Reasonable Adjustment

We are proud to be a disability confident leader and we welcome applications from disabled candidates and candidates with long-term conditions.

We fully support adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we encourage candidates to discuss their adjustment needs by emailing the job contact which can be found under the contact point for applicants section.

We do not have an exhaustive list of adjustments that we support but just some examples include additional time to complete your application form, behaviour questions up to 72 hours prior to interview and having extra time at interview.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position.

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

Any move to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home). 

DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign.

DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.