At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and run experiments to explore AI's societal impacts and influence.
- Company: Join the world's leading team on AI security, working with top experts.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, generous leave, learning stipends, and hybrid work options.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with opportunities for growth and impactful research.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in AI governance and societal wellbeing.
- Qualifications: Strong Python skills and interest in AI's societal effects required.
The predicted salary is between 65000 - 75000 £ per year.
About the AI Security Institute
The AI Security Institute is the world's largest and best-funded team dedicated to understanding advanced AI risks and translating that knowledge into action. It operates in the heart of the UK government, with direct lines to the Prime Minister’s office, and collaborates with frontier developers and governments worldwide.
Team
The Societal Impacts team studies high-impact societal risks caused by frontier AI deployment. Its mandate is to build a rigorous, world-class evidence base for the safe and responsible development of frontier AI by identifying risks, measuring impacts, and informing mitigations. The team focuses on how frontier AI influences human beliefs, decisions and behaviour, and where that influence threatens human autonomy and wellbeing. Themes include how AI changes beliefs and actions, deferral of consequential decisions to AI, AI modelling of mental states, indistinguishability from humans across modalities, and collective dynamics that emerge as AI agents interact with humans and one another.
Role Description
Successful candidates will be strong researchers and engineers who work with research scientists to design, implement and run experiments that answer important questions about the effects AI will have on society. Illustrative projects might include:
- Implementing a human-AI interaction study where multiple human and AI participants converse and play a game
- Building an automated pipeline that recruits participants and runs a human-AI experiment end-to-end, tracking how a given capability shifts with each new model release
- Designing and running model evaluations and benchmarks for societal risks such as AI persuasion, deception, or failure to disclose that it is an AI
Required Skills And Experience
- Experience writing scalable, maintainable Python code
- Experience in one or more of the following:
- Data engineering, including data collection, cleaning, processing and visualisation
- ML engineering, including experience training or evaluating models using PyTorch or a similar library
- Full-stack web development
- Knowledge of machine learning sufficient to understand recent papers in the field
- Strong verbal communication, experience working on a collaborative research team, and interpersonal skills
- Demonstrable interest in and understanding of the societal impacts of AI
Desired Skills And Experience
- Building and maintaining complex data products
- Designing and implementing experiments in human-AI interaction
- Training or evaluation of frontier AI models
- Research related to societal impacts of AI systems
- A specialisation in a relevant field of social or political science, economics, cognitive science, criminology, security studies, AI safety or another relevant field
What We Offer
- Impact you couldn't have anywhere else
- Incredibly talented, mission-driven and supportive colleagues
- Direct influence on how frontier AI is governed and deployed globally
- Work with the Prime Minister’s AI Advisor and leading AI companies
- Opportunity to shape the first and best-resourced public-interest research team focused on AI security
Resources & Access
- Pre-release access to multiple frontier models and ample compute
- Extensive operational support so you can focus on research and ship quickly
- Work with experts across national security, policy, AI research and adjacent sciences
Growth & Autonomy
- If you’re talented and driven, you’ll own important problems early
- 5 days off and annual stipends for learning and development, and funding for conferences and external collaborations
- Freedom to pursue research bets without product pressure
- Opportunities to publish and collaborate externally
Life & Family
- Modern central London office (cafés, food court, gym), or, where applicable, option to work in similar government offices in Birmingham, Cardiff, Darlington, Edinburgh, Salford or Bristol
- Hybrid working, flexibility for occasional remote work abroad and stipends for work-from-home equipment
- At least 25 days’ annual leave, 8 public holidays, extra team-wide breaks and 3 days off for volunteering
- Generous paid parental leave (36 weeks of UK statutory leave shared between parents + 3 extra paid weeks + option for additional unpaid time)
- On top of your salary, we contribute 28.97% of your base salary to your pension
- Discounts and benefits for cycling to work, donations and retail/gyms
Salary
Annual salary is benchmarked to role scope and relevant experience. Most offers land between £65,000 and £145,000, made up of a base salary plus a technical allowance. An additional 28.97% employer pension contribution is paid on the base salary. This role sits outside the DDaT pay framework.
Level 3: £65,000–£75,000 (Base £39,850 + Technical Allowance £25,150-£35,150)
Level 4: £85,000–£95,000 (Base £47,355 + Technical Allowance £37,645-£47,645)
Level 5: £105,000–£115,000 (Base £61,620 + Technical Allowance £43,380-£53,380)
Level 6: £125,000–£135,000 (Base £74,605 + Technical Allowance £50,395-£60,395)
Level 7: £145,000 (Base £74,605 + Technical Allowance £70,395)
Additional Information
Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application; however, all examples and statements must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism is identified, applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may face disciplinary action. All candidates must undergo a criminal record check and obtain baseline personnel security standard (BPSS) clearance before appointment. A strong preference exists for eligibility for counter-terrorist check (CTC) clearance.
Nationality requirements
We may offer roles to applicants from any nationality or background.
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code sets out expected behaviour. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities, and offers schemes for candidates with disabilities and for redeployment interview schemes.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attracting, retaining and investing in talent wherever it is found. Statistics on diversity and inclusion are monitored, and recruitment privacy notices apply.
Deadline for applying to this role is Sunday 21st June 2026, end of day, anywhere on Earth.
Research Engineer - Societal Impacts employer: AI Safety Institute
The AI Security Institute is an exceptional employer, offering a unique opportunity to work at the forefront of AI research with direct influence on global governance and deployment. Located in central London, the institute fosters a collaborative and mission-driven culture, providing extensive resources for research, generous benefits including flexible working arrangements, and significant support for professional development. Employees enjoy a vibrant work environment, ample opportunities for growth, and the chance to make a meaningful impact on society through their work.
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