Associate, Operations

Location: San Francisco, CA (on-site 5 days/week)

About The Center for AI Safety (CAIS)

The Center for AI Safety (CAIS) is a leading research and advocacy organization focused on mitigating societal-scale risks from AI. Some of our past achievements include: releasing the most widely used measure of AI capabilities used by all major AI companies, running a large compute cluster to facilitate AI safety research which has been cited over 16,000 times, and publishing a global statement on AI Risk signed by Geoffrey Hinton, Yoshua Bengio and top AI CEOs.

The Role

This is a full-time, on-site role for someone with 2 - 4 years of generalist operations experience. You’ll report to the Director of Operations.

Our Operations Associates are the connective tissue that bring together the entire organization. Your job is to understand the behind the scenes workflows that keep CAIS running, from People Ops and Recruiting to IT and Legal, and to serve as the liaison to the program teams, identifying ways you can support them so that they can do their best work. You’re motivated by AI Safety and understand that enabling the team to do high-impact work is itself high-impact work. You're comfortable with ambiguity, can move quickly, and bring strong judgment about when to act independently versus when to escalate. You’re low ego, no task is beneath you, and no problem is too small.

This role is not a good fit for you if you’re looking to use Ops as a stepping stone into something else like Program Management or Fieldbuilding. We’re looking for someone who genuinely enjoys the unglamorous aspects of operations and wants to grow within it.

What You'll Do

Operational Coordination & Team Support

• Serve as a reliable first-line point of contact for employee questions and inbound, org-wide, operational requests so you can triage, route, and follow through to resolution.
• Monitor shared channels and inboxes used for operational requests; ensure requests are acknowledged, tracked, and closed out.
• Maintain and develop internal documentation, reference guides, and tracking systems on behalf of the Ops team.
• Provide administrative and operational support to Ops leadership and other teams (Field Building, Research, Public Engagement) as needed.
• Proactively identify, recommend and implement solutions across staffing, processes and tools to make the CAIS engine run smoother.

People Ops Support

• Support onboarding and offboarding logistics in coordination with the People Ops Manager by preparing materials and setting up accounts as needed and serve as a friendly first point of contact for new joiners.
• Help coordinate team events, offsites, and moments of recognition (birthdays, milestones, celebrations).
• Assist with policy rollout and day-to-day execution of People programs.

IT & Systems Support

• Triage and fulfill access requests for approved tools in coordination with IT; maintain clean provisioning records.
• Assist IT with software and device onboarding/offboarding logistics.
• Help maintain the software/tools inventory and support periodic audits.

Office Support

• Support day-to-day office needs such as restocking supplies, coordinating catering, setting up for all-hands and events.
• Liaise with facilities/office management on space requests and small improvement projects.
• Assist with visitor logistics and access coordination.

What We're Looking For

• Bachelor's degree
• 2 - 4 years of generalist operations, project management, or similar experience
• You've planned and executed something big: a large offsite, a multi-day event, a conference, owning everything from the high-level coordination down to the catering confirmations and day-of troubleshooting.
• You notice the broken process and fix it before anyone asks
• You're able to context-switch comfortably and quickly
• You roll up your sleeves: no task is beneath you, no problem is too small
• You reach for automation but understand where and when a human should be kept in the loop
• Proven ability to manage multiple workstreams and competing priorities without dropping the ball on details
• Clear, professional communicator who is comfortable fielding questions from staff, coordinating across teams, and maintaining internal documentation
• Able to perform physical tasks associated with office support (lifting up to 30 lbs, catering coordination, event setup, etc.)
• Comfortable learning and working across a range of tools (e.g. Google Workspace, Slack, Notion, or similar); picks up new software quickly
• Exercises good judgment and discretion when handling sensitive information (personnel matters, access lists, vendor relationships)
• Able to move at the pace of a fast-scaling, well-funded, early-stage company: fast decisions, frequent re-prioritization, and high ownership
• Genuine interest in AI safety and CAIS's mission

Nice to Have

• Familiarity with the back-office needs of technical or research-heavy organizations
• Startup or nonprofit experience at early stage (50-150 person) companies

Salary Range

$80,000 - $110,000 annually, depending on experience.

Benefits

• Health insurance for you and your dependents
• 401K plan + 4% matching
• Unlimited PTO
• Lunch and dinner at the office
• Annual Professional Development Stipend
• Access to some of the top talent working on technical and conceptual research in AI safety

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Center for AI Safety is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other protected status in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. In alignment with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment.

If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please contact [email protected].

We value diversity and encourage individuals from all backgrounds to apply.