UK Winter Fellowship 2027

Participants in the Research Track conduct a research project of their choice. They also participate in expert Q&A and seminar series aimed at developing a broad understanding of the field, and spend time forging connections with other researchers and practitioners.

We welcome a wide range of applicants, from early-career individuals to experienced researchers or policy professionals with established track records in adjacent fields. We think this track would be an especially good fit for candidates interested in contributing to AI governance in roles in which producing or consuming research or policy analysis is one of the main duties.
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About the Team

GovAI was founded to help decision-makers navigate the transition to a world with advanced AI, by producing rigorous research and fostering talent. Our researchers have published in top venues, including Science and Nature, and work closely with decision-makers across government, industry, and civil society. Our alumni have gone on to influential roles in government (US, UK, EU), leading AI companies (e.g. Anthropic, DeepMind, OpenAI), top think tanks (e.g. CSET, RAND), and leading universities (e.g. Oxford, Cambridge).

Our team and affiliate community possess expertise across risk management, threat modelling, frontier AI regulation, technical governance, agent governance, AI economics, international cooperation, US-China relations, and AI forecasting. Since publishing our first research agenda in 2018, we have helped define and shape the field of AI governance.

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About the Fellowship

Seasonal Fellows on the Research Track join GovAI to conduct independent research on a topic of their choice, with mentorship from leading experts in the field. Each fellow is paired with a supervisor from the GovAI team or network. They spend the first two weeks of the fellowship exploring the AI governance landscape, before settling on a research proposal with input from their supervisors. Their research could result in a report, white paper, journal article, op-ed, or blog post targeted at an audience relevant to AI governance. The Research Managers and our broader team will offer additional support in deciding what project and output would be most valuable for the fellow to work toward. You can read about the topics our previous cohorts of Summer and Winter Fellows worked on here and here.

Alongside their projects, fellows will also invest time in upskilling on AI governance and widening their professional network. GovAI will organize a series of Q&A sessions with AI governance experts, weekly seminars aimed at developing subject-matter knowledge, workshops for building relevant skills,  work-in-progress meetings that facilitate peer-to-peer feedback, and social events. Fellows will also be encouraged to discuss follow-on career opportunities with our team and network. 

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Qualifications and Selection Criteria

We strongly encourage you to apply if you are interested in using your career to help decision-makers navigate the transition to a world with advanced AI.

We are interested in candidates from a broad set of professional backgrounds, including those with experience in government, academia, industry, or civil society. There are no specific requirements for the role, although we expect that the most promising candidates will typically have relevant graduate study, research experience, or professional experience in policy or related areas. Relevant areas of expertise include – but are by no means limited to – public policy, political science, computer science, economics, biosecurity, cybersecurity, China studies, and risk management (e.g. assurance and auditing). 

When assessing applications, we will be looking for candidates who have the following strengths or show positive signs of being able to develop them:

• Quality of work: The ability to produce clearly written, insightful, and even-handed research. We are particularly excited about strong reasoning ability, and clear and concise writing.
• Relevant expertise: Skills or knowledge that are likely to be helpful for work on AI governance. We think that relevant expertise can take many different forms. Note that we also do not have any strict degree requirements.
• Judgement: The ability to prioritise between different research directions, and good intuitions about the feasibility of different research directions.
• ‍Team fit: Openness to feedback, commitment to intellectual honesty and rigour, comfort in expressing uncertainty, and a serious interest in using your career to contribute to AI governance.
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Salary, Duration, and Location

Winter Fellows will join for three months, between 18 January and 9 April, in our office in London, UK. Fellows will receive a salary of £12,000, plus support for travelling to London. While in London, we provide our Fellows with lunch on weekdays and a desk in our London office. This is intended to be a full-time and in-person role. We are able to sponsor 3-month temporary work visas. For successful applicants who require a visa, note that you will need to remain in your country of visa application for some time while the visa application is underway.
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Senior Candidates

We realise that for senior professionals or academics, some of the above may present obstacles to your participation in the fellowship. For candidates with exceptional profiles, we are sometimes able to make accommodations.
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How to Apply and What to Expect

The application process consists of three stages: 

• In the first round, candidates submit a written application and, if selected, complete a short (approximately 20-minute) automated abstract reasoning assessment, which serves as a pathway to the second round.
• The second round consists of a paid, remote work test, to which we will invite candidates in August. 
• The third round, which takes place in September, consists of a remote interview and reference checks. 
• We expect to communicate final decisions to candidates in October.

Once applications open, you'll be able to reach us directly for deadline accommodations, accessibility support, or any questions about the process.

Addressing complex AI governance challenges requires many different skillsets and perspectives. We welcome applicants from a wide range of backgrounds. If our mission excites you, we encourage you to apply, even if your experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification listed. Your unique combination of experience and motivation might be exactly what we're looking for.