Tony Blair Institute for Global Change Senior Policy Advisor – AI Policy & Governance 2025

Deadline: December 6, 2024

Applications are open for the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change Senior Policy Advisor – AI Policy & Governance 2025. The Senior Policy Advisor for AI Policy & Governance is a new role in the Science & Technology (S&T) policy team within the TBI’s Policy and Politics division in London. The S&T policy team develops actionable solutions for how governments can foster R&D and innovation, accelerate technology adoption, and govern emerging technologies. In doing so, they help political leaders across the world harness the power of technology in effective and responsible ways.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to usher in a new era of economic growth and human flourishing. However, technological innovation alone is not enough to reach this end. Realising AI’s potential will also require political leadership and good governance. It also requires targeted efforts to ensure that AI systems are ethical, legal and safe, build public trust in technology, and harmonize AI governance norms and standards across jurisdictions. 

The Senior Policy Advisor will lead the Institute’s efforts to become a credible and influential voice in AI policy debates. This includes advancing the thinking about how AI can be used responsibly to improve the lives and livelihoods – both in the developed and the developing world. The role involves developing and advocating for robust yet practical solutions to promote AI safety and ethics, putting effective frontier-AI governance on top of political leaders’ agenda.  Key responsibilities will include developing and vetting AI policy proposals in enough detail that they can be debated and implemented by policymakers; creating pathways to effective, multilateral AI governance to improve coordination among key state actors; briefing TBI leadership and client governments on key technical breakthroughs and emerging AI regulations. 

Responsibilities

The holder of this position will: 

• Lead a research programme to develop and advocate for robust and effective AI policy solutions for harnessing the power of emerging technologies while managing the risks.
• Produce high-quality published work and private briefing materials on AI policy for different audiences, including political leaders, thought leaders and the general public.
• Create pathways to effective, multilateral AI governance to improve collaboration and coordination between key state actors, with a specific focus on frontier-AI safety.
• Provide direct advice to senior leaders in TBI – as well as to our advisory teams and client governments across the world – on AI policy, safety and regulation.
• Communicate actively via different channels to put AI policy on top of political leaders’ agenda, championing progressive and responsible proposals for robust AI governance. 
• Host roundtables and advocate for the Institute’s point of view in external meetings, growing our reputation and influence in the field of AI policy and governance.
• Lead TBI’s engagements on high-level international AI summits and help shape emerging AI policies in different jurisdictions, including the UK, the EU, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. 
• Monitor technological, regulatory and societal trends to identify the most pressing AI policy issues political leaders will face in the coming 1-5 years.
• Translate cutting-edge academic research and technological breakthroughs into actionable policy work on how to responsibly navigate the AI regulation at speed.
• Expand TBI’s network and build broad coalitions for change, including with leading AI labs and AI policy researchers as well as like-mined policymakers and civil society orgs.
• Manage a range of research and policy projects at once.  In time, you may line manage one or two members of the Science & Technology Policy team.
• Contribute to the growth and development of a high-performing culture and provide a continuous focus on leading, development and employee well-being.

Eligibility

The successful candidate will: 

• Have a sustained and extensive track record of producing cutting-edge work in AI policy and governance within government, business, academia or a policy organization.
• Have a deep familiarity with contemporary AI policy and governance issues, especially recent developments in frontier-AI research, capabilities and governance.
• Have a strong academic track record in a relevant field, like computer science, technology policy, or AI ethics, safety and governance (MSc or equivalent is required; PhD is meriting).
• Have first-hand experience of working with political leaders or their teams to develop actionable solutions and drive real-world change.
• Have an extensive and deep network of global contacts through industry, academia and policy making relevant to the field of AI policy and governance.
• Have an in-depth understanding of AI opportunities and use cases as well as the ethical, social, legal and environmental governance challenges highly-capable AI systems pose.
• Have excellent teamwork skills to work successfully within a complex organization and a policy area that spans a diverse set of high-level stakeholders from different communities.
• Have a track record of project management; be strategic, entrepreneurial, and challenge the status-quo to develop plans for successfully delivering ambitious objectives.
• Have a strong ability to communicate complex AI policy issues, including to the TBI senior team, political leaders, partners from industry and academia, and the media.

The following attributes are desirable: 

• Experience of working closely with political leaders, with demonstrable impact 
• Experience of developing or deploying AI systems within tech companies and AI labs 
• Experience of conducting and publishing highly-impactful academic work on AI policy 
• Experience of working in different geographical and cultural contexts

Application

Click here to apply

For more information, visit Senior Policy Advisor – AI Policy & Governance.