Principal, Programs and Policy

Omidyar Network•San Francisco, CA

3d•$171,400 - $214,200•Hybrid

About The Position

Omidyar Network (ON) is a philanthropic organization dedicated to guiding the digital revolution towards shared power, prosperity, and possibility. The Programs and Policy team focuses on the culture, governance, and business of digital technology, aiming to shape societal governance and amplify shared agency through grant-making and advocacy. This role is for a builder who is fluent in frontier technology, comfortable navigating diverse environments, and energized by making powerful technologies beneficial. The position involves working across investments, grants, ecosystem-building, and thought leadership, originating and completing deals and grants, building relationships, and shaping ON's perspective on technology's direction. It is a hybrid role based in the San Francisco office, requiring employees to work in the office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and reside within 100 miles of the office.

Requirements

7+ years of relevant experience.
Genuine fluency in technology and AI, with the ability to read technical papers, understand frontier model architectures, and engage in conversations with founders and researchers.
A track record of self-directed learning (writing, building, side projects).
Comfort across discourses, able to engage seriously with and translate between technical safety research, public-interest tech, venture/founder circles, and traditional philanthropy.
A bias toward originating opportunities, building relationships, and starting initiatives.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Endless curiosity, demonstrated by wide reading and intellectual engagement.
Current U.S. work authorization.

Nice To Haves

Product management at a technology or AI company, with exposure to how frontier products are built, shipped, and positioned.
Early-stage venture capital, especially with a track record of sourcing or working on technical deals and a desire to broaden the aperture beyond pure financial return.
Technology journalism, especially reporters who have moved past writing about the industry to wanting to shape it.
Strategy, business development, or growth roles at a technology startup, particularly where you have had to operate cross-functionally and externally.

Responsibilities

Help implement the Responsible Technology & AI strategy, translating strategy into action across priority domains like frontier AI, nuclear and advanced energy, and brain-computer interfaces, and adapting the strategy as the field evolves.
Originate and maintain relationships across the ecosystem, building a network within AI labs, technology companies, venture capital firms, AI-focused philanthropies, academic institutions, and civil society organizations to identify trends and connect stakeholders.
Manage complex stakeholder ecosystems by convening and participating in conversations across diverse groups, including organizing events, attending conferences, and participating in working groups.
Develop ON's point of view in writing, creating internal memos and external thought pieces on technology trends and ON's perspective to inform investment committees, board materials, and partner conversations.
Help execute transactions, investments, and grants by running diligence, structuring deals, drafting memos, and managing the operational details of deploying capital, working alongside senior investors and program leads on a diverse portfolio.