Manager, AI Safety and Security Policy

Manager, AI Safety and Security Policy

Full-time, 1-year termed FAS staff position with benefits

Washington, DC | Hybrid

To Sum It Up…

What’s the “elevator pitch” for the role?

FAS is expanding its capacity to govern increasingly advanced AI systems in the public interest. As Manager for AI Safety and Security Policy, you will help turn cutting‑edge technical insights into concrete policy action by managing high‑quality projects, producing rigorous analysis, and helping ensure that rapid advances in AI are matched by credible, evidence‑based governance.

Working under the direction of the Director of AI and Emerging Technology Policy, you will help develop and execute policy proposals at the frontier of AI safety and security. You will help identify emerging risks, translate technical work into policy‑relevant insights, and coordinate policymakers and experts at key moments when decisions are being shaped.

This is a role for a program manager and emerging policy entrepreneur: someone who can build clear workplans, coordinate contributors, produce original analysis, and move ideas from research to real‑world policy outcomes. You will work closely with researchers, policymakers, civil society, and industry experts across a wide range of perspectives, ranging from AI safety and security to innovation and governance, supported by cross‑functional FAS teams.

Success in this role means managing high‑quality execution and producing rigorous work that creates impact: informing debates, shaping proposals, and supporting decision‑makers as they grapple with the challenges posed by frontier AI systems.

In the near term, this role will focus substantially on FAS’s AI safety work, including policy research, technical assistance, convenings, policy sprints, and the AI Safety Policy Entrepreneurship Fellowship.

Skills and Expertise:
Must Haves

What skills do you need to show proficiency (or higher) in order to be a strong candidate?

• 5+ years of relevant experience across think tanks, government, academia, civil society, or industry.
• Demonstrated program or project management experience, including the ability to break large or ambiguous projects into manageable components, timelines, and deliverables.
• Familiarity with at least one relevant AI safety/security policy area.
• Demonstrated expertise in research, analysis, and writing related to AI policy or technology governance, with the ability to translate complex concepts into clear, actionable, and policy‑relevant materials for diverse audiences.
• Ability to engage critically with technical AI work, including understanding research claims, methods, and limitations and translating those insights into policy implications.
• Comfort working in a dynamic, time‑sensitive policy environment, including managing deliverables tied to policy windows.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across teams and with external partners, incorporating feedback and contributing to a respectful, mission‑driven culture.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, including the ability to track and quality‑control multiple deliverables associated with a single project.
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate complex projects across teams and engage effectively with stakeholders at all levels of an organization.
• Experience coordinating research projects, policy sprints, events, or convenings involving multiple stakeholders.

• Direct experience engaging with government stakeholders, including congressional offices, federal agencies, or state governments.
• Experience supporting or participating in briefings for policymakers or senior decision‑makers.
• Direct experience in one or more AI safety and security policy topics, including frontier AI safety, AI and CBRN risks, AI…