---
title: 'Research Scientist at FAR.AI'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/research-scientist-far-ai-berkeley-sm47q0a6gqcp'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-09'
---

# Research Scientist at FAR.AI

- **Company:** FAR.AI
- **Location:** Berkeley
- **Compensation:** $120k–$190k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** hybrid
- **Posted:** 2025-03-21
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-09
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/far.ai/1bda4204-bfef-4a47-b72b-3562ec0bb3f9/application

**Skills:** Machine Learning, Adversarial Evaluation, GPU Compute, Python, Research Methodology, AI Alignment, Machine Learning Algorithms, Sparse Autoencoders, Probing Deception, Interpretable Data Attribution

> The Research Scientist will take ownership of AI alignment research agendas, conducting pre- and post-release adversarial evaluations and maintaining GPU compute infrastructure. The role involves developing scalable implementations of machine learning algorithms and collaborating with a multidisciplinary team to adv...

## Job description

## ABOUT US

FAR.AI http://FAR.AI is a non-profit AI research institute working to ensure advanced AI is safe and beneficial for everyone. Our mission is to facilitate breakthrough AI safety research, advance global understanding of AI risks and solutions, and foster a coordinated global response.

Since our founding in July 2022, we've grown to 40+ staff https://www.far.ai/about/team, published 40+ academic papers https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=FVJ24k8AAAAJ, and convened leading AI safety events https://far.ai/events/. Our work is recognized globally, with publications at premier venues such as NeurIPS, ICML, and ICLR, and features in the Financial Times https://www.ft.com/content/175e5314-a7f7-4741-a786-273219f433a1, Nature News https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-02218-7 and MIT Technology Review https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/02/28/905615/reinforcement-learning-adversarial-attack-gaming-ai-deepmind-alphazero-selfdriving-cars/. We conduct pre-deployment testing on behalf of frontier developers such as OpenAI and independent evaluations for governments including the EU AI Office https://www.far.ai/news/far-ai-selected-to-lead-eu-ai-act-cbrn-risk-consortium. We help steer and grow the AI safety field through developing https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.06624 research https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.20702 roadmaps https://www.researchgate.net/publication/396910034_Open_Technical_Problems_in_Open-Weight_AI_Model_Risk_Management with renowned researchers such as Yoshua Bengio; running FAR.Labs https://www.far.ai/programs/far-labs, an AI safety-focused co-working space in Berkeley housing 40 members; and supporting the community through targeted grants https://www.far.ai/programs/grantmaking to technical researchers.

## ABOUT FAR.RESEARCH

We explore promising research directions in AI safety and scale up only those showing a high potential for impact. Once the core research problems are solved, we work to scale them to a minimum viable prototype, demonstrating their validity to AI companies and governments to drive adoption.

We are aiming to rapidly grow our team in the following areas especially, at varying levels of seniority:

- Evals and red-teaming: Conducting pre- and post-release adversarial evaluations of frontier models (e.g. Claude 4 Opus https://x.com/ARGleave/status/1926138376509440433, ChatGPT Agent https://cdn.openai.com/pdf/839e66fc-602c-48bf-81d3-b21eacc3459d/chatgpt_agent_system_card.pdf, GPT-5 https://cdn.openai.com/gpt-5-system-card.pdf); developing novel attacks https://www.far.ai/news/defense-in-depth to support this work; and exploring new threat models (e.g. persuasion https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.02873, tampering risks https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.11630).
- Infrastructure: Maintaining GPU compute infrastructure to support experiments with open-weight models and developing new tooling to allow our research teams to scale their fine-tuning and post-training workflows to frontier open-weight models.

We are also seeking more senior candidates in the following research areas:

- Mitigating AI deception: Studying when lie detectors induce honesty or evasion https://www.far.ai/news/avoiding-ai-deception, and developing model organisms for deception and sandbagging
- Adversarial Robustness: Working to rigorously solve these security problems through building a science of security and robustness for AI, from demonstrating superhuman systems can be vulnerable https://far.ai/post/2023-07-superhuman-go-ais/, to scaling laws for robustness https://www.far.ai/news/does-robustness-improve-with-scale and jailbreaking constitutional classifiers https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.24068
- Mechanistic Interpretability: Finding https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.12892 issues https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.16560 with https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.11756 Sparse Autoencoders, probing deception using AmongUs https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.04072, understanding learned planning https://far.ai/post/2024-07-learned-planners/ in SokoBan and interpretable data attribution.

FAR.AI http://FAR.AI is one of the largest independent AI safety research institutes, and is rapidly growing with the goal of diversifying and deepening our research portfolio. We would welcome the opportunity to add new research directions if you are a senior researcher with a strong vision and would like to pitch us on it.

## ABOUT THE ROLE

We organize our team as Members of Technical Staff, with significant overlap between scientist and engineer roles. As a scientist, you will take ownership of and accelerate existing AI alignment research agendas. You can publish research findings broadly and engage with the AI alignment community. If you are an experienced research scientist, then we would be excited to incubate your agenda at FAR using our existing infrastructure and world-class team.

You will receive engineering mentorship via code review, pair programming and regular 1-to-1s. Alongside the engineers, you will be involved in develop scalable implementations of machine learning algorithms and using them to run scientific experiments,

You are encouraged to develop your research taste, proposing novel directions and joining a research pod which suits your interests. You are welcome to take time to study and to attend conferences free of charge. Our technical team is organized into research pods to enable continuity of organizational structure whilst each pod can pivot through varied research projects.

Beyond FAR.AI http://FAR.AI, you can work with national AI safety institutes, frontier model developers and top academics.

## ABOUT YOU

We are excited by unconventional backgrounds. You may have the following:

- New and under-explored AI alignment idea(s).
- Experience leading and/or playing a senior role in research projects related to machine learning.
- Ability to effectively communicate novel methods and solutions to both technical and non-technical audiences.
- PhD or several years research experience in computer science, artificial intelligence, machine learning or statistics.

## BENEFITS*

- 🩺 Health Insurance - 94% of Insurance premium paid by Organization commencing within 1 month after your start date
- 💰 Retirement - 401(k) plan with up to 2% match
- 🏝️ PTO - 25 days Paid Time Off per year, accrued weekly and up to 10 days of paid sick leave per year
- 🚼 Paid Leave - Paid Bereavement, Family, Medical and Pregnancy Disability Leave
- 🖥️ WFH Stipend & Equipment - Work computer and stipend provided for eligible employees
- 🍽️ Catered Meals (Berkeley Office Only) - Catered lunches and dinners on workdays at our office

*(Available only to full-time employees located in the US)

## LOGISTICS

If based in the USA or Singapore, you will be an employee of FAR.AI http://FAR.AI (501(c)(3) research non-profit / non-profit CLG). Outside the USA or Singapore, you will be employed via an EOR organisation on behalf of FAR.AI http://FAR.AI or as a contractor.

- Location: Both remote and in-person (Berkeley, CA or Singapore) are possible. We sponsor visas for in-person employees, and can hire remotely in most countries.
- Hours: Full-time (40 hours/week).
- Application process: A 72-minute programming assessment, two interviews with members of our technical staff, and a paid work trial lasting up to 1 week. If you are not available for a work trial we may be able to find alternative ways of testing your fit.

If you have any questions about the role, feel free to contact us at talent@far.ai. Otherwise, if you don't have questions, the best way to ensure a proper review of your skills and qualifications is by applying directly via the application form. Please don't email us to share your resume (it won't have any impact on our decision). Thank you!

## About FAR.AI

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: FAR.AI is a technical AI safety research non-profit dedicated to ensuring advanced AI systems are safe and beneficial for everyone through in-house research, grantmaking, and global coordination events.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Non-profit, fiscally sponsored project)
- **Headquarters**: Berkeley, California, USA
- **Founded**: July 2022 (incorporated October 2022)
- **Founders**: Adam Gleave (CEO) and Karl Berzins (President)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: AI Safety Research, Research Services
- **Target customers**: Policymakers, industry leaders, academic researchers, and the broader AI safety ecosystem (primarily B2B/Institutional)
- **Mission**: To ensure advanced AI is safe and beneficial for everyone. The organization is motivated by the potential risks posed by rapid advances in AI capabilities.

## Products & Services
- **FAR.Research**: In-house technical research team exploring early-stage agendas for AI safety, including adversarial robustness, AI control, and scaling issues. Publishes influential papers and open-source tools.
- **FAR.Labs**: A collaborative co-working space in Berkeley for AI safety researchers and organizations, hosting over 40 active members and fostering a thriving community.
- **FAR.Futures (formerly FAR.Grants)**: A targeted grantmaking program supporting academics and independent researchers developing innovative solutions to critical AI risks. Has directed millions of dollars in funding.
- **Events & Conferences**: Organizes high-impact events including the Alignment Workshop series (global), Berkeley ControlConf 2026 (AI control), and the Technical Innovations for AI Policy (TIAP) Conference, connecting policymakers with leading AI technical experts.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not applicable (non-profit)
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding — Not disclosed (non-profit, fiscally sponsored). Key output: 30+ research publications, 1000+ attendees across 10+ events.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Collaborations with leading think tanks, academic groups (e.g., CHAI, MATS, Apart Research), and major media outlets (Nature, MIT Technology Review, Financial Times, NYT). Fiscally sponsored project of IDAIS.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew 53.1% YoY (from ~17 to 34 employees as of mid-2026). Expanded to 8 countries (US, UK, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Singapore, Mexico, Australia). LinkedIn followers grew 171.4% yearly. Research cited in US Senate hearings (Stuart Russell testimony).

## Competitive Advantages
- **Technical Breakthroughs**: Published influential work on adversarial attacks on superhuman Go AIs (featured in Nature), multi-agent adversarial policies, and red teaming leading language models for frontier labs.
- **Ecosystem Centrality**: Runs the only dedicated AI safety coworking space (FAR.Labs) and a premier grantmaking program, positioning FAR.AI as a hub connecting academia, industry, and policy.
- **Policy Influence**: TIAP Conference directly connects policymakers with technical experts; research cited in congressional testimony.
- **Top Talent Magnet**: Attracts researchers from top AI labs (Anthropic, Google DeepMind) and academic safety hubs (Cambridge AI Safety Hub, CHAI).

## Strategic Focus
- **Field Building**: Scaling the global AI safety ecosystem through grants, events, and coworking space.
- **Technical Innovation**: Continuing to explore early-stage, high-impact research agendas (e.g., AI control, robustness, adversarial training) until they can be adopted by the broader community.
- **Policy Engagement**: Deepening connections between technical experts and policymakers to ensure safety techniques are adopted.
- **Talent Development**: Expanding the team with world-class researchers, engineers, and operations staff to tackle critical AI safety challenges.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-Driven Culture**: Employees report high satisfaction (5.0/5.0 on Culture, 5.0/5.0 on Work-Life on LinkedIn). The mission to make advanced AI safe is described as "one of the most critical challenges of our time."
- **Work Environment**: Hybrid/remote-first with a physical HQ in Berkeley. Offers both remote and onsite roles. The Berkeley office (FAR.Labs) fosters a collaborative, startup-like atmosphere.
- **Team Composition**: Small, high-agency team of ~34 people with a flat structure. Heavy emphasis on research (18% of staff) and project management (12%). Senior leadership includes former Anthropic and DeepMind researchers.
- **Compensation & Perks**: Rated 4.0/5.0 on Compensation. As a non-profit, likely offers competitive (but not market-maxing) salaries with strong mission alignment. Perks include the coworking space, events, and a highly collaborative environment.
- **Career Growth**: High growth trajectory (53% YoY headcount increase) means rapid advancement opportunities. Employees often move to top AI labs (Anthropic, DeepMind, Stability AI) after their tenure.
- **Notable**: Currently hiring for Jailbreaking Lead (Red Team), Executive Operations Assistant, and Technical Project Manager (Red Team).

## Sources
1. [far.ai](https://www.far.ai/)
2. [far.ai/about](https://www.far.ai/about)
3. [far.ai/careers](https://www.far.ai/careers)
4. [linkedin.com/company/far-ai](https://www.linkedin.com/company/far-ai)
5. [builtin.com/company/farai](https://builtin.com/company/farai)

## Other roles at FAR.AI

- [Research Lead - Pre-training Safety](https://feeny.ai/job/research-lead-pre-training-safety-far-ai-berkeley-z2xbmrwva3e6) — Berkeley
- [Engineering Manager (Red Team)](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-red-team-far-ai-global-0rrs6jb6d92f) — Global
- [Technical Program Manager, Research](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-program-manager-research-far-ai-united-states-xwtezz6qryxw) — United States
- [General Counsel](https://feeny.ai/job/general-counsel-far-ai-united-states-z6d5d2mpgz2q) — United States
- [Head of People](https://feeny.ai/job/head-of-people-far-ai-united-states-w5w1pw55j7de) — United States
- [Senior Programs & Strategy Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-programs-strategy-manager-far-ai-united-states-3gjmjqaj5fcy) — United States
- [Senior Project Manager, Events](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-project-manager-events-far-ai-united-states-zqdbs22ykftw) — United States
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- [Technical Project Manager, Red Team](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-project-manager-red-team-far-ai-global-rtr69mk8w2dg) — Global
- [Jailbreaking Lead, Red Team](https://feeny.ai/job/jailbreaking-lead-red-team-far-ai-global-9mk6k0437cwc) — Global