Program Scientist, Agents

Responsibilities

Managing the AI Agents Program

• Strategy & scientific direction: Oversee the program’s strategy, setting ambitious, concrete, and measurable goals for the program, being responsible for delivery against those goals, and helping to measure progress against the strategy.
• Budget: Manage the program’s budget, monitoring expenditures and forecasting future needs to ensure efficient use of resources.
• Team and Advisors: Manage the program’s team, ensuring the program has sufficient internal and external staff to execute its strategy, and securing additional resources when necessary. Manage and convene external advisors as needed to ensure program benefits from top scientific thinking at the intersection of AI and humanities.
• Sourcing & Selection: Oversee the program’s efforts to identify, source, and fund the best people and projects, in line with the program’s strategy.
• Grantee management & support: In collaboration with the Grantee Affairs Manager, Coordinate and maintain communication with awardee PIs and research teams to track progress and challenges faced over the duration of the award. Periodically assess if additional or different kinds of support could be necessary or beneficial.
• Assessment: Participate in the internal assessment process, including the analysis of incoming scientific proposals and reports in context of the current landscape. Assess program’s awards and other activities, utilizing metrics and analysis to measure success and inform strategic decision-making.
• Internal & External Communication: Engage organizational leadership to maintain clear awareness of communication about the program, ensuring leadership feedback is incorporated into the program. In coordination with the Communications Team, Manage external communication about the program, including website, social media, and interviews.
• Partnerships: Start, manage, and grow relationships with universities, scientific research institutions, science collaboratives/funds, incubators, science-focused government organizations, and philanthropic organizations.

Designing and Building New Programs

• Successful candidates are people who will want to stay at Schmidt Sciences for a long time and develop multiple different programs in AI, starting with a focus on AI agents.
• Develop ideas for promising AI agents and other AI programs, where philanthropy can have impact at the intersection of AI, science, and technology.
• Test initial ideas with internal and external experts to refine them.
• Develop and pitch program concepts to leadership.
• For programs that get approval for initial explorations (“seedlings”), develop the success criteria and execute on the initial exploration

Supporting the AI Center

• Strategy Support: Contribute to the design, evolution, and execution of the AI Center’s strategy.
• Programmatic Support: Design and build new AI-focused programs. Support existing AI Center programs by providing networking assistance, scientific expertise, and mentorship, as necessary, and by working closely and collaboratively with the teams responsible for delivery. Contribute to the team’s assessment of proposals. Envision, plan, and execute on strategic AI grants or other opportunities for AI and advanced computing, drawing on an extensive network in scientific and academic circles.
• Operational Support: Contribute to the improvement of the AI team’s operations, including our grantmaking, budgeting, events & convening, and other processes.
• Convening Support: Design and organize effective convenings around strategic program goals, including community building and accelerating science outcomes
• External Engagement: Act as a conduit for bringing in innovative ideas and perspectives from the AI community, actively engaging with stakeholders to identify emerging trends and opportunities for collaboration.
• New Programs: As needed, work with team members to develop new programs that might support technology, talent, or specific future pathways for the field.
  General Support: Contribute to the overall scientific priorities in the AI and advanced computing portfolio and set future directions for engagement.

Supporting Schmidt Sciences

• Serve as an expert advisor at Schmidt Sciences on topics in AI and advanced computing.
  Work with other members of the Schmidt Sciences team to drive organizational priorities and model our values.
• Identify potential partners for Schmidt Sciences, including universities, labs, other research facilities, and philanthropic and government organizations.
• Participate in relevant industry or academic conferences and events, representing Schmidt Sciences’ presence on AI and advanced computing issues.

Skillset

• 4+ years of post-graduate experience.
• Hands-on experience building and conducting research on generative AI agents, as evidenced by a developer portfolio and / or academic publications.
• A scientific doctorate from an accredited institution.
• Ability to critically analyze and assess grant proposals and other opportunities.
• Demonstrated ability to develop partnerships and to lead efforts end-to end.
• Demonstrated track record of scientific accomplishments, evidenced by peer-reviewed publications, patents, successful grant applications, or contributions to innovative research projects, ensuring the ability to bring expertise and insights to advance scientific objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to develop research partnerships and to lead such efforts end-to-end.
• Deep relationships in the AI community and experience working with AI-focused institutions.
• Experience producing technical writing for expert and general audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and a record of impact in high-intensity, team-based environments.
• The highest integrity and ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Be able to travel within the U.S. and internationally on a regular basis as needed.