International Strategy Research Role OR Research Manager

These roles will remain open until filled, with a preference for applications before March 15th. Early applications are encouraged.

If you have any issues applying, please email careers@iaps.ai.

Key Information

• Title: International Strategy Research Associate/Researcher/Senior Researcher OR Research Manager 

• Annual salary ranges:

• Research Associate: $61,000 - $70,000 USD

• Researcher: $71,000 - $110,000 USD

• Senior Researcher: $111,000 - $130,000 USD

• Research Manager: $110,000 - $130,000 USD

• Exact salary is based on title level, prior relevant experience, and location (candidates in Washington, D.C., London and the San Francisco Bay Area will receive relatively higher salaries), according to IAPS’s salary algorithm.

• Location: remote (we are able to hire in most countries), with a preference for candidates who are based or would be willing to relocate to Washington, D.C., London, or the San Francisco Bay Area (visa sponsorship potentially available).

• Job type: full-time preferred, permanent position

• Start date: ideally April or May 2026 

• Application deadline: applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until filled, with a preference for applications before March 15th.  

IAPS is hiring a Research Manager (i.e. the team’s leader) and for 1-2 research roles in our International Strategy team. This team focuses on policy at the international level around advanced AI, including work on strategic thinking and tracking the Chinese AI landscape. 

As a research manager, you will lead the 4-person team, setting team strategy and unlocking the potential of the other members of the team. In a research role, you will have significant autonomy to design and carry out research and policy engagement projects.

The team has strong relationships with key stakeholders in the UK and US governments and works closely with leading think tanks in the field. For example, we have co-authored papers published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and RAND, and have advised prominent track II organizers on their agendas. 

You might thrive in these roles if you care deeply about securing a positive future in a world with powerful AI, are knowledgeable about AI as well as international relations and/or China, and are able to spot opportunities to make significant policy impact.

About IAPS

The Institute for AI Policy and Strategy (IAPS) is a nonpartisan think tank that produces forward-looking policy research to address the implications of advanced artificial intelligence, from today’s frontier models to potential AGI and beyond. Our work equips policymakers and industry leaders to protect innovation while navigating high-magnitude risks and opportunities at the intersection of AI, national security, and geopolitics.

Our work includes:

• Conducting forward-looking policy research in areas including preparedness, information and supply chain security, and international coordination needed to navigate strategic competition with adversaries who may misuse AI.

• Cultivating policy talent — IAPS is forging a community of researchers and practitioners from across many policy areas and backgrounds to meet this critical moment.

• Providing relevant and timely insights to stakeholders across Congress, the executive branch, industry, academia, and civil society.

Follow these links to read more about our work and our team, and sign up to our newsletter.

About the Roles

IAPS is hiring for research management and research roles within the International Strategy team.

The International Strategy does research and policy engagement about AI policy at the international level. The team has the following focuses:

• International competition as a driver of severe AI risks, including loss-of-control scenarios. The main countries in scope here are the United States and China.

• Strategic instability in relation to advanced AI. For example, assessing the likelihood advanced AI could significantly undermine strategic stability and what should be done about this.

• Improving decision-making among Western audiences by providing high-quality information about Chinese AI development. For example, equipping policymakers with information about the competitiveness of future Chinese frontier models, or about Chinese foreign policy priorities around AI.

The International Strategy team primarily works on these focuses through two styles of work. Strong candidates will be competent with at least one of these styles of work. It is not necessary to be able to do both.

• Strategic thinking: Producing research that can guide high-level strategy for what should happen at the international level in relation to advanced AI. We intend for this work to often be anticipatory; focusing on issues that will be top-of-mind for policymakers in one or more years. Examples of this work include: Strategic visions in AI governance: Mapping pathways to victory & Crucial Considerations in ASI Deterrence

• China-watching: Engaging with and synthesizing published sources from the PRC, often in Mandarin. The goal is to help English-speaking audiences better understand what is happening in China in relation to advanced AI. Examples of this work include How Some of China’s Top AI Thinkers Built Their Own AI Safety Institute & No, the 2017 New Generation AI Development Plan did not include a goal of building AGI.

The team produces a mix of public and non-public outputs. In the links above, you can see a selection of public outputs that we have authored or co-authored, spanning our different focuses and styles of working.

The team currently has four full-time staff members and we expect this to grow over time. Additionally, team members regularly supervise IAPS AI Policy Fellows and other promising individuals who are transitioning into AI policy careers. 

We have the following roles available:

• Research management

• Research (strategic thinking)

• Research (China-watching)

You can choose to apply for one or more of these roles. The number of roles to which you apply will not affect how we score you when assessing you for the individual roles. For example, you could be made an offer for one of the roles, even if your application for one of the other roles is unsuccessful.

The application process is designed to avoid duplication, such as with the same initial round for all three. We encourage you to apply for whichever roles are a good fit for you. Please only submit one application form, even if you would like to be considered for multiple roles.

Key Responsibilities

Research Management

We expect to hire one Research Manager to lead the International Strategy team. (This person will replace the team’s current Research Manager, who is starting a new position from May.)

Key responsibilities of this role include:

• Line-managing other members of the team, such as helping them to design research that is as impactful as possible, keep their work on track, and meet their professional development goals.

• Ensuring that the team’s overall theories of change remain strong, including adapting team strategy as needed as the external situation changes.

• Leading the team’s outreach to relevant stakeholders such as government agencies, AI companies, and other think tanks.

The research manager should have some knowledge about strategic thinking and Chinawatching work (as defined above). However, we expect that many strong candidates will not have deep expertise with both of these lines of work; the role of the Research Manager is primarily to support others in the team to pursue them.

Research

We expect to make 1-2 hires for a research role in the International Strategy team.

We are open to hiring across a wide range of seniority levels; there is scope for the title to be Research Associate, Researcher, or Senior Researcher. Our priority is hiring someone with significant potential and strong alignment with the team’s priorities. If you progress beyond the first round, we will tell you the title for which we are considering you, and the salary range associated with this title.

People in research roles generally own their own research projects, working on both deep research projects and rapid-response deliverables in response to stakeholder requests. There is significant scope to collaborate with colleagues or other organizations, and to mentor fellows.

You can apply for one or both of the two kinds of research roles:

• Strategic thinking: If you apply for this research role, we will assess your ability to guide high-level strategy about goals for international AI policy. For example, researching how advanced AI might alter the geopolitical balance of power, or what forms of cooperation between adversary countries might be desirable in relation to advanced AI.

• China-watching: If you apply for this research role, we will assess your ability to document key features of the Chinese AI ecosystem, using published sources in both English and Mandarin.

You could be a strong fit for one of the research roles, even if you would not be a strong fit for the other research role. For example, there is no expectation that someone hired for the strategic thinking role would be able to do Chinawatching work.

What We Are Looking For

Skills and competencies

For all the roles, we strongly value good knowledge of governance and policy as it relates to advanced AI. This includes knowledge of the key actors, key goals and constraints for the field, and what policy efforts are currently ongoing.

We also value the following abilities:

• Generating new policy insights

• Designing research projects with strong theories of change

• Carrying out large projects with a high degree of autonomy

• Writing clearly and concisely for a range of audiences, particularly policymakers

• Conducting outreach with outside stakeholders such as government officials or people in other think tanks

• Giving helpful feedback to colleagues on their research

For the Research Manager role in particular, we additionally look for: 

• Experience managing direct reports or, ideally, leading a team. Supervising fellows in programs for people moving into AI policy, such as the IAPS fellowship, counts as relevant experience.

• (Not essential) Strong background in international relations and/or foreign policy

• (Not essential) Strong knowledge of the AI ecosystem and AI policy within China and/or Mandarin language skills

For the strategic-thinking research role, ability to generate new policy insights and familiarity with the field will be particularly valuable.

For the Chinawatching research role, strong Mandarin skills are needed. As a reference, this could mean an HSK level of 4 or above (but you do not need to have actually taken the HSK exams). The application process will test whether you can read Chinese policy documents but we expect that even strong candidates might have a somewhat limited understanding of these documents when not using dictionaries or machine translation.

What We Offer

Compensation

• Annual salary ranges:  

• Research Associate: $61,000 - $70,000 USD

• Researcher: $71,000 - $110,000 USD

• Senior Researcher: $111,000 - $130,000 USD

• Research Manager: $110,000 - $130,000 USD

• Compensation is paid in your local currency. For example, if you are a UK resident, we would pay the equivalent to the amounts above but in GBP.

• The exact salary will be based on the candidate’s prior relevant experience and location (candidates in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and London will receive relatively higher salaries), according to IAPS’s salary algorithm.

Other Benefits

• Comprehensive global benefits package, including generous health insurance. 

• Generous paid time off (PTO) leave and unpaid leave, including:

• Unlimited vacation with a minimum 30 days off per year (incl. public local holidays, vacation time, and “mandated” 3-weeks total mid- and end-year organization-wide breaks).

• Unlimited (within reason) personal and sick leave.

• Parental leave - up to 6-9 months of a combination of paid and unpaid parental leave that can be taken prior to and/or during the first 2 years after a child’s birth or adoption. 

• Technology stipend of the equivalent of $2000 USD every 3 years that can be used to cover costs of purchasing work and office equipment.

• Annual team retreat and other opportunities for paid travel of generally 1-2 weeks per trip, including stipends to help cover the cost of dependent care while traveling.

• We encourage proactive professional development and offer learning opportunities, including conferences and workshops.

Additional Information

• Location: These roles are fully remote, and we are able to legally hire in most countries. However, candidates based in Washington D.C., San Francisco Bay Area, or London can expect to receive a higher salary to reflect the added value of in-person stakeholder outreach in these locations of interest to our organization.

  • In certain cases, we may be able to provide visa sponsorship to the US or UK and help candidates relocate. If you have questions about whether we can hire or provide visa sponsorship in another country and if this will influence your decision about applying, please contact careers@iaps.ai before submitting your application.

• Hours: This is a full-time role, based on a 40-hour work week. We seek candidates who can commit to at least 32 hours per week. Please note that the salary is based on a 40-hour work week and will be prorated accordingly.

• Travel: These roles have opportunities for business travel. However, all travel is optional and travel is not required to take this position. Trips are fully paid and may involve visits to Washington D.C., San Francisco, or London, one team retreat annually, and relevant conferences.

• Language: Please submit all of your application materials in English and note that we require professional level English proficiency.

• Accessibility: We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible hiring process. We warmly invite you to reach out to careers@iaps.ai with any accommodation requests.

• Inclusivity: IAPS is committed to building an inclusive, equitable, and supportive community. We encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and identities.

Our Hiring Process

There are 4 evaluation stages for the Researcher and Research Manager roles: 

1. Application questions and initial screening

2. Written task

3. Interview

4. Reference checks

Occasionally, we may insert a brief additional step, such as a short interview or a small task, to help us fairly assess candidates before the larger written task. If used, this step will take no more than an hour. We aim to run a fair, timely, and transparent process, and all applicants will receive a response.

To apply, please click the ‘Apply Now’ button below. You may select the roles for which you wish to be considered in the form.

Note Before Applying: Please do not include a cover letter, photograph, or headshot of yourself, or any personal information that is not relevant to the role for which you’re applying (including marital status, age, identity traits, etc.). Additionally, please do not ask our staff members involved in the hiring process to meet with you – to ensure fairness, we try to minimize these interactions, and requests for meetings with the hiring committee members during the process will be declined. 

Contact: Please email careers@iaps.ai if you have any questions.