Tech Policy Strategist (AI for Democracy Action Lab) Save

Protect Democracy seeks an experienced, highly motivated Tech Policy Strategist to drive change at the intersection of artificial intelligence and American democracy.  This role is designed to scale the AI for Democracy Action Lab, Protect Democracy’s multidisciplinary, nonpartisan “action tank” that builds tech tools and shapes law and policy to safeguard and enhance democracy in the AI era. Together with allies in the field, the AI for Democracy Action Lab seeks not only to defend against AI’s dangers but to seize its possibilities for strengthening self-government in the U.S. This position is remote* based in the US.

In this role, you will develop and lead advocacy strategies at the frontier of AI policy. From idea generation through all stages of planning and execution, you will advance creative impact projects that integrate policy, coalition-building, and communications strategies to constrain deployments of AI that accelerate authoritarianism and promote policies that enhance our democracy. You will also serve as a thought leader and trusted resource—helping build Protect Democracy’s credibility and influence on the policy questions that will define how AI shapes our democracy. In addition, you will lead our team’s engagement with federal and state government officials, with major tech platforms, and with other members of civil society to pursue policy interventions that strategically advance our goals. 

In your first year, you will help shape the AI for Democracy Action Lab’s policy advocacy priorities, building upon our team’s strategies to date. Our work has included advocacy to push back against the Pentagon’s retaliation against Anthropic for standing by its red lines, to defend online trust and safety work from retaliatory immigration enforcement, and to stop the administration’s unlawful aggregation of Americans’ personal data and deployment of technology for surveillance purposes. 

This is a role for experienced candidates. Ideal candidates bring significant AI policy or platform expertise paired with advocacy experience or orientation, with a demonstrated interest and track record working in cross-ideological coalitions and the ability to engage with legislative offices and partners on the right, center, and left of the political spectrum. 

At Protect Democracy, we believe that diversity isn’t just a strength—it’s a necessity for tackling the complex challenges facing our country today. A broad range of backgrounds, perspectives, and lived experiences strengthen our ability to analyze problems, craft solutions, and drive meaningful change. We strongly encourage candidates from diverse backgrounds and from across the political and ideological spectrum to apply.

In this role, you will drive:

• Strategic campaign development and execution: Design and lead cross-ideological campaigns to advance AI policy solutions at the state and federal levels, focusing on issues like domestic mass surveillance and data aggregation in the AI era, electoral infrastructure cybersecurity against AI-enabled threats, and content provenance for synthetic content.

• Coalition building: Identify and organize diverse stakeholders—including NGO allies, tech platforms, civil society leaders (e.g., business leaders and former government officials), and experts—to build broad-based support for pro-democracy AI and data governance. 

• Policy innovation and advancement: Generate and hone creative policy proposals and analysis on topics such as AI-enabled surveillance, data governance, and AI transparency, accounting for these policies’ technical feasibility and constitutionality. Work with legislators, their staffs, agency leaders, experts, and coalition partners to advance pro-democracy tech policy reforms at the state and federal levels.

• Serving as a trusted resource: Act as a nonpartisan advisor to AI labs and government regulators, providing expert analysis on how AI impacts the civic trust and shared reality necessary for self-government. Write, publish, and give presentations to key audiences highlighting the need for specific reforms. Brief reporters and provide expert commentary on complex policy issues and solutions at the intersection of AI and democracy.

The ideal candidate brings:

• At least 12 years of relevant professional experience, or 10 or more years of relevant professional experience and a relevant advanced degree;

• A background in law, public policy, political science, or political campaigns, paired with a sophisticated understanding of AI and its technical capabilities, including both the risks and opportunities that AI presents to our democracy;

• Strong commitment to a cross-ideological advocacy approach and demonstrated ability to build trusting and productive relationships with partners across the political spectrum and advocacy ecosystem;

• Demonstrated ability to design and lead tech policy development, campaigns, or advocacy initiatives at the federal or state level at a high level of excellence—including familiarity with lobbying strategies at the state or federal level;

• Experience managing complex projects and teams from idea generation to execution and impact assessment;

• Ability to draft concrete legislative or regulatory proposals, including legislative text and supporting policy documents with minimal supervision, and supervise team members to prepare these materials;

• Excellent judgment about political activism, including what levers can make change happen with limited resources;

• Ability to foster collaborative relationships and work in a team environment with people with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives;

• Growth mindset and enthusiasm for giving and receiving feedback up, down and sideways;

• Demonstrated passion for protecting and improving our democracy.

Preferred, but not required:

• Experience in the tech industry.