Sourcing & Programs Staff – AI State Capacity
Referral award: If you recommend someone we end up hiring, you’ll receive a $3k referral bonus.
Location: Washington, D.C. preferred but open to remote US.
Deadline: Apply here by August 23 AOE.
About IFP
The Institute for Progress (IFP) is a non-partisan think tank working to accelerate and shape the direction of scientific, technological, and industrial progress. You can read more about our vision and mission in our founding essay. You can also check out some of our Emerging Technology team’s work like The Launch Sequence and our research on the impacts of chip exports to China.
Building US AI state capacity
AI is moving fast. The federal government needs people who deeply understand it. Right now, there aren’t nearly enough people with that expertise in the rooms where decisions get made.
This is a problem IFP is well-positioned to help solve, sitting at the intersection of the tech and policy worlds. So, we’ve begun building a function dedicated to getting more talented people from AI and adjacent fields into government.
Your goal will be developing this bench of talent. You’ll design and run programs to find exceptional people, help them understand where their skills are most needed, and support them in making the leap into public service. This could involve running talent identification programs, organizing convenings and events, building partnerships with other AI or talent-focused organizations, and developing tools to source talent at scale.
You’ll work within IFP’s Emerging Technology team with 2 other talent-focused team members, several contractors, and support from our 4-person operations team for events/programs logistics.
What you’ll do
- Build relationships with tech researchers, founders, and policy entrepreneurs to find people who are great fits for public service.
- Help talent understand the landscape of government opportunities and where their skills are most needed.
- Design and run programs to grow the AI policy field, like dinner series, conferences, workshops, and fellowships.
- Develop partnerships with other tech and policy organizations to reach beyond our existing network.
- Build tools to surface promising people we’d never find manually.
Who you are
We are open to both mid- and early career versions of this role, and we welcome applicants from a range of backgrounds. You’re likely to be an especially great fit if you are:
- A builder. You’ve designed and run programs end-to-end: developing the strategy, executing, and iterating.
- A people person. You genuinely enjoy talking to people all day, quickly understand what they care about, and can make friends across very different circles.
- Agentic and persistent. You’re constantly coming up with new ideas to tackle problems, and you’ll keep trying until you find something that works.
- Well-networked in AI research, AI policy, or adjacent fields — or you’ve demonstrated you can break into new networks fast.
Salary & benefits
- Your salary will be $110,000-250,000 depending on your capabilities and responsibilities. You will also receive comprehensive health insurance, unlimited paid time off, daily catered lunch, and other benefits.
