CHAI Policy Internship

02 Apr 2024

Deadline April 17th, 2024. Policy Internship at Center for Human-Compatible Artificial Intelligence

Official application here.

Policy Internship

The Center for Human-Compatible AI (CHAI) is seeking motivated students for its AI Policy Internship program. As an AI policy intern, you will have the opportunity to explore how to translate policy goals into technical requirements, and technical concerns into policy.

CHAI Mission Statement

CHAI’s goal is to develop the conceptual and technical wherewithal to reorient the general thrust of AI research towards provably beneficial systems.

Artificial intelligence research is concerned with the design of machines capable of intelligent behavior, i.e., behavior likely to be successful in achieving objectives. The long-term outcome of AI research seems likely to include machines that are more capable than humans across a wide range of objectives and environments. This raises a problem of control: given that the solutions developed by such systems are intrinsically unpredictable by humans, it may occur that some such solutions result in negative and perhaps irreversible outcomes for humans. CHAI’s goal is to ensure that this eventuality cannot arise, by refocusing AI away from the capability to achieve arbitrary objectives and towards the ability to generate provably beneficial behavior. Because the meaning of beneficial depends on properties of humans, this task inevitably includes elements from the social sciences in addition to AI.

General Information

  • Location: In-person at UC Berkeley
  • Deadline: April 17th, 2024
  • International Applicants: We accept international applicants
  • Start Date: Flexible
  • Duration: Internships are typically 12 to 16 weeks
  • Compensation: $5,000 per month
  • Requirements:

Qualifications

  • Currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student in a relevant field such as computer science, political science, or public policy 
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Excellent written and verbal communication abilities
  • Background or interest in artificial intelligence, machine learning, political economy, and/or public policy
  • Self-motivated and able to work independently on research projects

Roles and Responsibilities

  • Work on a research project under the guidance of a CHAI mentor
  • Take the lead in executing your research project with advice from your mentor
  • Publish your research findings as a first-author paper
  • Attend and participate in CHAI’s weekly seminars, annual workshop, and team event

Internship Application Process Overview

Please note: while we will do our best to adhere to them, all dates in the Internship Application Process Overview are subject to change.

  • Initial Review
    • We will examine your application based on motivation, research potential, grades, experience, and other criteria.
    • Applicants will likely receive a response by late April
  • Interviews
    • We will conduct interviews on a rolling basis; they will likely occur between late April to early May

Other Information

  • For any questions, please contact chai-admin@berkeley.edu.
  • In the event that your situation changes (e.g. you receive a competing offer) and you need us to respond to you sooner than you had initially thought, then please let us know.