Zurich AI Safety is looking for (Co-)Directors - EOI

By mariuswenk, LukasFluri, Erik Jentzen, marcel.steimke @ 2025-09-03T17:43 (+15)

TL;DR: 
Zurich AI Safety (ZAIS) is looking for a Director or Co-Directors. As of now, ZAIS is purely volunteer-run and is applying for funding for this position in collaboration with EA Switzerland. Therefore, this is an expression of interest (EOI) rather than a secured hiring, but promising candidates will be considered first in case funding is secured.

Expression of Interest
Expression of Interest form
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What is ZAIS?

ZAIS started as the Zurich AI Alignment (ZAIA) reading group and since 2022 has started to organize speaker events, community gatherings and educational programs for people interested in AI safety in the Zurich area. With AI developing rapidly, the topic has become even more important in recent years, and ZAIS has been growing fast. The recently created AI Futures event series has attracted up to 40 new participants per session and the Zurich AI Safety Day will be happening soon (September 27, 2025). Zurich also has particularly strong talent streams, with top universities such as ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich, and AI companies like Google DeepMind and Anthropic. To sustain the building momentum, we are now aiming to transition from volunteer-led activities to professional AI safety capacity building in Zurich and Switzerland. With the announcement of the 2027 AI Summit in Geneva, a strengthened ecosystem of people focusing on safety feels more important now than ever before.

About the Role

• Location: Switzerland, Strong preference for Zurich (most activities happening there)
• Title: (Co-)Director
  • Depending on the availability of funding, we might hire one or two (Co-)Directors.
• Work hours: Part-time to full-time role requiring 20-40 hours per week. Flexible working arrangements are available.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic vision and program development
  • Shape the strategic direction of Zurich AI Safety, designing programs aligned with the organization's mission to advance AI safety in Zurich and beyond that Switzerland.
  • Develop and launch programs, including career support, educational courses, and community-building activities to connect and support professionals in the Swiss AI safety ecosystem.
• Community Building
  • Lead efforts to strengthen the AI safety community in Switzerland, connecting students and professionals across AI governance and technical research, and related fields.
  • Organize networking events, facilitate AI safety meetups, and establish groups to build a collaborative and supportive community. upport volunteers in organizing AI safety groups throughout Switzerland
  • Coordinate with existing AI safety organizations in Switzerland, like Simon Institute and PourDemain.
• Talent Development and Career Support
  • Provide resources and guidance to help individuals find impactful roles in technical AI safety research and governance.
  • Develop partnerships with think tanks, universities, and other organizations to offer career support and networking opportunities.
• Operational and Organizational Leadership
  • Oversee the operational setup of Zurich AI Safety, including budgeting, compliance, staffing, and organizational development.
  • Collaborate with board members to ensure that the organization's programs and goals align with its mission and long-term objectives.

Program strategy and potential initiatives:

ZAIS will focus on two primary objectives:

1. Channeling Talent to High-Impact Roles

• Career Advice and Connections: Build a team dedicated to helping professionals transition into AI safety roles in Switzerland, providing mentorship and key connections within the German policy ecosystem.
• Introductory and Educational Programs: Implement specialised courses, such as the AI Futures series that was developed in Zurich, and BlueDot or CAIS-type programs, aimed at students or experienced professionals. Follow up with participants to help them find meaningful roles in AI safety.

2. Growing and developing the AI Safety ecosystem in Zurich and Switzerland

• Grow into a national AI Safety organization: Support the growth of new AI safety student groups across Switzerland, and grow towards a Swiss AI safety organization.
• Networking Events and Retreats: Organize gatherings and retreats to unite people in AI safety, encourage collaboration, and foster new ideas. Enable future conferences like the Zurich AI Safety Day.
• Strengthen exchange between technical research and policy: Connect tech talent from our channels to AI safety policy organizations for improved strategy exchange between the two domains. Policy organizations that we are already connected with include the Simon Institute, Pour Demain, and the Talos Network.
• Promote development of new projects through exchange between researchers: Connect AI safety researches among each other, to foster collaboration on new research projects.
• Prepare Switzerland for a safety direction of the global AI summit in 2027: Use the organization's network and visibility to influence the 2027 Swiss AI Summit towards a safety-aligned focus.

Qualifications

Required

• Strong commitment to making AI development safe.
• A drive to make things happen and a self-starter mindset.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal abilities, with experience in building connections to other professionals in the field.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a small team.
• Familiarity with AI safety concepts, and a basic understanding of proposed solutions and research directions in AI safety.
• Fluency in English; proficiency in German or French is a plus.

Desired

• Proven track record in strategic planning and project management.
• Experience in community building, e.g. as part of a university association.
• Excellent leadership and team management skills.
• Skilled in managing budgets and operations.

Potential candidate profiles

Zurich AI Safety is open to candidates from a variety of professional backgrounds who bring experience in one or more of the following areas:

• Educator: Skilled program managers with expertise in AI safety education, ideally focused on experienced professionals.
• Consultant: Able to identify and assess fieldbuilding needs within the Swiss AI sphere, working with different stakeholders to design and implement projects.
• Community Organizer: Skilled in community management, event planning, and outreach, committed to fostering collaboration in AI safety.

Compensation & benefits

We would like to make it clear that the funding is not yet secured for the organization. We are currently in discussion with funders about the project and plan to either hold an open hiring process or help the top candidate(s) apply for funding for themselves. For this reason, we recommend filling out the EOI form and not waiting for the public job announcement.

We are currently fundraising for Zurich AI Safety. For a full-time role, we aim to offer a salary in the range of 65.000 - 85.000 CHF (gross salary), based on experience, along with a comprehensive benefits package, including:

• 25 days of paid leave
• Flexible working arrangements
• Professional development support and advising
• Desk for co-working at PEAKS office in Zurich, together with other orgs like EA Switzerland and Apollo Research

How to register your interest

Please sign up on this form. EOIs will be reviewed on a rolling basis. As mentioned above, we will either hold an open hiring round or help the top candidate(s) to fundraise independently, so early submissions are encouraged.