Founder's Associate (London/Berlin)

Join the only nonprofit dedicated to supporting whistleblowers in frontier AI globally - building the infrastructure that helps ensure risks at the frontier are uncovered and addressed.

Work directly with our founder on high-impact projects spanning strategy, operations, research, and policy. Exceptional autonomy, access to leading AI networks, and clear leadership growth opportunities in our fast-expanding organization.

About AIWI

The AI Whistleblower Initiative (AIWI) is an independent nonprofit organization supporting whistleblowers in frontier AI globally.

Whistleblowers are a critical ‘backstop’ to ensuring AI is developed responsibly - as company insiders may be the first (and possibly only) signals for catastrophic developments. These insiders however face significant barriers - we are the only organization globally solely focused on breaking down these barriers systematically through direct support for frontier AI insiders, expert networks, advocacy, education, research, and policy work - to ensure that critical warnings will never be missed and ‘speaking up’ becomes normal, safe, and effective.

AIWI was started by former startup founders Karl Koch and Max Nebl. We are currently hosted by the Whistleblower Netzwerk e.V., one of Europe’s oldest whistleblowing CSO’s.

The Role

This is an exceptional opportunity for a highly ambitious individual who thrives on identifying problems and solving them end-to-end before moving to the next challenge.

You'll work directly with our founder in our collaborative, supportive, but high velocity environment, driving critical initiatives across operations, strategy, research, policy, and growth. You will keep track of priorities, create structures and bring clarity into fast moving projects - helping the founder make the most of his time, energy, and networking skills.

What you'll do: Example Responsibilities and Projects

• Problem Identification & Solution Ownership: Spot opportunities or challenges, develop comprehensive solutions, and execute them independently or with the team before transitioning to the next priority
• Growth & Community Development: Build scalable engines for reaching AI insiders and stakeholders beyond individual campaigns and individual projects, e.g. co-organizing in-person conferences, online events, or preparing our participation/speaking at events.
• Strategic Partnerships: Conceptualize and execute partnership strategies with key organizations in the AI safety and whistleblowing ecosystem - creating new offerings
• International Expansion: Support setup of legal entities in Germany and the United States, including establishing finance, accounting, and compliance processes (through partners/ service providers)
• Research: Execute smaller research projects individually or support larger programmes with experts in the field from ideation to publication, including insider surveys, focus groups, expert network mapping, or policy analysis.
• Operations Excellence: Own or support critical operational processes and systems to ensure organizational effectiveness, e.g. talent acquisition strategies and volunteer management, fundraising professionalization

Essential Qualities

• Highly ambitious initiative taker comfortable with significant responsibility
• Highly structured problem-solver
• Strong analytical capacity with intellectual rigor – critical thinking comes naturally and brings you genuine joy
• Resilient and pragmatic with the ability to "do what has to be done," even when tasks are temporarily difficult, painful, or tedious
• Speed-with-caution mindset – you can deliver quickly in a highly sensitive space, being able to differentiate between when ‘80/20’ and ‘minimal room for error’ is appropriate
• Empathetic listener passionate about understanding what people really need, obsessed with feedback
• Mission-driven with genuine passion for AI safety and whistleblowing protection

Background & Experience

• +2 years of work experience in fast-paced environments (startups, consulting, IB) and/or relevant AI safety organizations
• Strong interest/ experience in AI (safety): Terms like “Scaling laws”, “Model eval”, “Instrumental convergence”, or “Gradual disempowerment” should ring a bell for you
• Strong plus: Backgrounds in whistleblowing (law), legal, or technical (AI)
• Based in or willing to relocate to London or Berlin

Work Style

You should view this role as preparation for potentially building your own AI safety organization. We aim for a healthy work life balance - in case of emergencies this position might also require you to be involved outside of normal working hours. You should find pushing hard together with a passionate, impact-driven team energizing rather than draining.

Professional Growth

• Exceptional autonomy unusual for this level of seniority – own problems end-to-end
• World-class network access – you'll build relationships with leading figures in frontier AI and whistleblowing
• Clear path to leadership within a growing, high-impact organization
• Skill development across strategy, operations, policy, research, and organizational building

Work Environment

• Fun! We are very friendly and supportive team (if you ask us)
• Fast-paced, impact-driven culture with purposefully small team structure for maximum learning and responsibility
• Speak-up culture where raising concerns proactively is rewarded and valued
• Mission-critical work serving both individual AI insiders and humanity's long-term flourishing
• International scope with opportunities to shape policy and practice across multiple jurisdictions
• Hybrid work and flexible hours

Compensation

• Base: EUR 55,000-65,000
• We might be able to adjust compensation under specific circumstances, e.g. for significantly more experienced individuals.

To Apply, Submit:

• Your CV
• Statement of motivation explaining why you're an excellent fit for this role (formal cover letter not required – a thoughtful email explanation is sufficient)
• 2-3 references (names only – we won't contact them without your explicit consent)
• By the 19th of September

Ready to help build the infrastructure that ensures AI development serves humanity's best interests? We'd love to hear from you.