Workstream Lead- AISI- L6

Job summary

The AI Security Institute (AISI) is the largest team in a government dedicated to understanding AI capabilities and risks in the world.

Our mission is to equip governments with an empirical understanding of the safety of advanced AI systems. We conduct research to understand the capabilities and impacts of advanced AI, and develop and test risk mitigations. We focus on risks with security implications, including the potential of AI to assist with the development of chemical and biological weapons, how it can be used to carry out cyber-attacks, enable crimes such as fraud, and the possibility of loss of control.

The risks from AI are not sci-fi, they are urgent. By combining the agility of a tech start-up with the expertise and mission-driven focus of government, we’re building a unique and innovative organisation to prevent AI’s harms from impeding its potential.

Job description

Job description

We are looking for experienced Workstream Leads to lead high-impact research teams across the breadth of AISI’s research agenda. These roles sit within the AISI Research Unit and are responsible for providing scientific, strategic and managerial leadership to multidisciplinary teams working on frontier AI risks, evaluations, mitigations, and safety science.

Workstream Leads may lead teams focused on a range of research problems relevant to AISI’s mission, including but not limited to cyber capability, chemical and biological risk, loss of control, societal impacts, evaluations, safeguards, or other priority areas across the Research Unit. Teams are typically multidisciplinary, drawing together expertise from machine learning, engineering, natural and social sciences, and policy.

You will shape and deliver a research strategy for your workstream, ensuring that the team remains at the forefront of technical AI safety research and produces outputs that are scientifically rigorous, policy-relevant, and operationally useful. You will be responsible for building and leading high-performing teams, setting research direction, overseeing delivery, and working closely with stakeholders across government, academia, and industry.

This is a technical leadership role ideally suited to candidates with a strong strategic perspective on frontier AI safety and security, experience leading high-performing technical or scientific teams, and the ability to translate complex research into actionable insight for decision-makers. The workstream is situated within the AISI Research Unit and reports to the Research Unit Deputy Director. This post requires Security Clearance (SC) and any continued employment will be conditional on earning and maintaining this level of clearance.

Person specification

Role summary

As a Workstream Lead in a cutting-edge research environment, you will provide the strategic and managerial leadership needed to ensure your team stays at the forefront of AI evaluations and safety science. You will help define AISI’s research agenda, lead delivery in a priority area, and ensure that the team’s work has meaningful impact for government, the wider research community, and the public interest. You will need to:

• Build and lead a talent-dense, multidisciplinary, and mission-driven team;

• Develop and deliver a strategy for a priority area of AISI’s research agenda, identifying and addressing risks from advanced AI systems;

• Ensure the team’s research portfolio answers critical policy and operational questions and is informed by the input of relevant cross-government experts and policymakers;

• Lead the development of cutting-edge evaluations, benchmarks, methods, or technical safeguards relevant to your workstream;

• Where appropriate, develop and oversee a portfolio of externally delivered research;

• Ensure that research outcomes are disseminated effectively to relevant stakeholders within government and the wider community;

• Forge relationships with key partners in industry, academia, and across government, including the national security community where relevant;

• Act as part of AISI’s wider leadership team, helping to shape culture, standards, and ways of working across the organisation;

• Contribute to the development of AISI as a unique and fast-growing institution at the intersection of frontier AI research, national security, and public policy.

This role sits outside of the DDaT pay framework given the scope of this role requires in depth technical expertise in frontier AI safety, robustness and advanced AI architectures.

Person specification

In accordance with the Civil Service Commission rules, the following list contains all selection criteria for the interview process.

Essential criteria

Experience of leading cutting-edge research, technical programmes, or scientific work relevant to frontier AI safety, security, evaluations, or risk mitigation, alongside experience of team leadership. This includes a broad understanding of the key research questions in one or more areas relevant to AISI’s mission, and the ability to communicate technical findings to inform wider cross-government efforts.

• Experience of leading impactful research, technical programmes, or scientific work relevant to frontier AI systems and their safety or security implications;

• Experience of conceptualising and delivering research agendas, evaluations, benchmarks, or mitigations in a fast-moving technical field;

• Strong strategic judgement on priority research questions relating to advanced AI capabilities, risks, and safeguards;

• Track record of working effectively with government experts and policymakers to ensure research informs real-world decision-making;

• Track record of working effectively with key external stakeholders, including industry and/or academia, on technically complex issues;

• Track record of effectively communicating technical work to a mixture of technical and non-technical audiences;

• Track record of successfully leading multidisciplinary teams to deliver multiple exceptional scientific breakthroughs, high-quality products, or other impactful outputs;

• Experience with mentorship and development of more junior team members.

Desirable skills

• Background in machine learning, AI evaluations, computer science, engineering, or another scientific discipline relevant to AISI’s research agenda;

• Research or applied experience in one or more areas relevant to AISI, for example cyber, chemical or biological risk, model evaluations, safeguards, societal impacts, or AI control/alignment;

• Strong understanding of research best practice in technical or scientific environments;

• Experience working in cross-functional teams, including scientists, engineers, and policy professionals.

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• The specific interview presentation title will be: ‘Please spend 30/45 mins presenting on your strategic vision for a priority AISI research workstream.’

Benefits

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribu