Research Scientist / Research Engineer - Narrow AI Tools for Bio-Chem (AI Safety Institute)

The team studies how LLMs and subject specific AI systems are advancing biological and chemical capabilities relating to harmful outcomes. This includes potential uplift to novice actors and future scenarios like design of biological agents.

As a Research Scientist/Research Engineer (Narrow AI Tools for biology/chemistry) you will contribute to our evaluation of biology and chemistry specific models.

The team works closely with other teams within the AI Safety Institute and wider UK government stakeholders to make sure our research has real-world impacts on AI safety and chemical and biological security through policy recommendations.

THE ROLE

As a Research Scientist/Research Engineer (narrow AI tools for biology/chemistry) you will contribute to our work on biology and chemistry specific models, developing and running model evaluations and providing expertise to the wider team.

Your day-to-day work may involve:

• Designing a task for evaluating different protein design tools.


• Testing out different applications of a new biological foundation model with different sets of reference data.


• Identifying public datasets for the purpose of testing predictions.


• Setting up the hosting of a new model on a compute cluster.


• Distilling lessons from work into a highly accessible and digestible format, and presenting this to policy makers.


• An RS may identify novel applications of tools or sets of tools that test the limits of their capabilities.


• An RE may spend time optimising the models (e.g. fine-tuning) and building pipelines and frameworks to streamline testing., The interview process may vary candidate to candidate, however, you should expect a typical process to include some technical proficiency tests, discussions with a cross-section of our team at AISI (including non-technical staff), conversations with your workstream lead. The process will culminate in a conversation with members of the senior team here at AISI.


Sift and interview process

Candidates should expect to go through some or all sof the following stages once an application has been submitted:-

• Coding test


• Initial interview


• Technical take home test


• Second interview and review of take home test


• Third stage interview


• Final Stage interview, If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.


Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

Any move to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

Feedback
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.,
• UK nationals


• nationals of the Republic of Ireland


• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK


• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)


• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)


• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020


• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
  
  PhD (or equivalent industrial experience) in Computational Biochemistry, Machine Learning, Protein Design, Computer Science, Structural Bioinformatics or a closely related field


• If you are applying as a Research Scientist, you should have evidence of strong technical outputs in their field such as publications or software packages.


• If you are applying as a Research Engineer, you should have evidence of developing machine/deep learning models.


• Applied experience in modern deep learning (Transformers, Diffusion)


• Experience in benchmarking models


• Extensive knowledge of relevant literature


• Strong coding experience (Python preferred, but experience in Julia/R/C++ also welcomed)


• Strong numerate skills (e.g. linear algebra, numerical optimisation)


• Strong communication skills, both for engaging with subject matter experts and non-technical stakeholders


• Ability to adapt quickly to changing priorities


Preferred Criteria for a Research Scientist

• Experience in designing experiments relevant to protein design e.g. surface plasmon resonance, biolayer interferometry or similar


• Experience collaborating internationally


• Strong subject matter expertise in your applied area


Preferred Criteria for a Research Engineer

• Experience optimising large-scale models


• Experience working with large complex datasets


• Strong interest in science and collaboration


Core requirements

• You should be able to spend at least 4 days per week on working with us


• You should be able to join us for at least 12 months


• You should be able work from our office in London (Whitehall) for parts of the week, but we provide flexibility for remote work, Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

The AI Safety Institute is the first state-backed organisation focused on advancing AI safety for the public interest. We launched at the Bletchley Park AI Safety Summit in 2023 because we believe taking responsible action on this extraordinary technology requires a capable and empowered group of technical experts within government.

We have ambitious goals and need to move fast.

• Develop and conduct evaluations on advanced AI systems. We will characterise safety-relevant capabilities, understand the safety and security of systems, and assess their societal impacts.


• Develop novel tools for AI governance. We will create practical frameworks and novel methods to evaluate the safety and societal impacts of advanced AI systems, and anticipate how future technical safety research will feed into AI governance.


• Facilitate information exchange. We will establish clear information-sharing channels between the Institute and other national and international actors. These include stakeholders such as policymakers and international partners.


Our staff includes senior alumni from OpenAI, Google DeepMind, start-ups and the UK government, and ML professors from leading universities. We are now calling on the world's top technical talent to join us. This is a truly unique opportunity to help shape AI safety at an international level.

As more powerful models are expected to hit the market over the course of 2024, AISI's mission to push for safe and responsible development and deployment of AI is more important than ever.

What we value:

• Diverse Perspectives: We believe that a range of experiences and backgrounds is essential to our success. We welcome individuals from underrepresented groups to join us in this crucial mission.


• Collaborative Spirit: We thrive on teamwork and open collaboration, valuing every contribution, big or small.


• Innovation and Impact: We are dedicated to making a real-world difference in the field of frontier AI safety and capability, and we encourage innovative thinking and bold ideas.


• Our Inclusive Environment: We are building an inclusive culture to make the Department a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, not only because we believe it is the right thing to do, but because it will help us be more innovative and make better decisions.
  
  The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:


• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.


• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an average employer contribution of 27%.


• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.


• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.


• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.


• The Department operates a discretionary hybrid working policy, which provides for a combination of working hours from your place of work and from your home in the UK. The current expectation for staff is to attend the office or non-home based location for 40-60% of the time over the accounting period.


Things you need to know