Director of Global Policy & Research

OpenMined•New York, NY

7d•Remote

About The Position

The Director of Global Policy & Research leads OpenMined's work at the intersection of frontier AI, data governance, and the public interest. You will own three things: Research direction. Set OpenMined's research agenda on the most consequential questions in frontier AI, particularly data availability, access, and governance, and ensure our work shapes how policymakers, civil society, and industry think about them. Policy positions. Develop and communicate substantive policy proposals on data access, privacy-preserving AI, and adjacent issues, ensuring AI systems and their interactions with data are transparent, competitive, and rights-respecting. Engineering alignment. Work closely with OpenMined's engineering leadership to identify where our protocols can be deployed in the public interest, and ensure the data networks we build and support are operated for public benefit. This is a management role where you will lead a team, build OpenMined's external profile in policy circles, and contribute to organizational strategy.

Requirements

Minimum 5 years demonstrated experience leading policy and/or research work at the intersection of AI, data governance, and public interest, ideally at a frontier AI lab governance team, an AI-focused think tank, a regulator, or comparable organization
Minimum 2 years of experience managing a small team
Track record of publishing thought-leading work that has shaped policy debates or public understanding
Existing professional relationships with policymakers, civil society, or standards bodies, and the credibility to build them in others
Strong technical literacy; comfortable engaging directly with engineering teams on cryptography, machine learning, and PETs, and translating that substance for policy audiences
Excellent written communication
Comfort operating in a startup environment with ambiguity and broad scope
Comfort traveling to the US and other policy hubs on average once a month

Responsibilities

Direct OpenMined's policy and research agenda, aligning it with engineering goals and organizational priorities
Spend meaningful time with engineering leadership to ground policy work in what OpenMined is building, and identify opportunities where our protocols can serve public-interest outcomes
Lead and manage members of the policy and research team
Develop and publicly communicate policy positions on priority topics, including data access and privacy-preserving AI
Build and maintain relationships with policymakers, civil society organizations, standards bodies, and adjacent networks across the world
Represent OpenMined in select external venues, including policymaker convenings and major AI governance forums