Tech Policy Strategist (AI for Democracy Action Lab)

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.

Compensation

The starting salary range is $141,100 to $160,000, commensurate with the candidate’s relevant experience, capabilities and skills and in alignment with internal equity.

About Protect Democracy

• *Flexible location. We are a remote-first organization based exclusively in the United States, meaning our staff work within the US and primarily virtually. We also offer shared workspaces for those who enjoy working in an office environment. We are established for remote work in many states across the country, and while candidates based anywhere in the United States are welcome to apply, we may not be able to offer employment in your current location. If you proceed in the hiring process, we will discuss where you currently live and what is possible in our initial interview. All staff are also required to travel at least two times per year to team retreats, and this role may require periodic travel. Accommodations to this requirement will be made only in exceptional circumstances.

• Commitment to an inclusive workplace. Protect Democracy is an equal opportunity employer. We believe that a broad range of backgrounds, perspectives, and lived experiences strengthens our ability to analyze problems, craft solutions, and drive meaningful change. Protect Democracy encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.

• Phenomenal benefits. Our benefits package includes generous sick leave and a flexible vacation policy where we encourage team members to take 4-5 weeks every year, along with 12 paid holidays, 6 weeks of paid family medical leave, and 18 weeks of paid parental leave. We also offer a 401(k) plan with up to 6% employer match that vests immediately. Additionally, we cover employee medical premiums at 100% (with up to 95% coverage for dependents depending on plan selection), and employee and dependent’s dental/vision at 100%. All employees have access to long-term disability and life insurance, fertility benefits, a home office stipend, and bonuses at the discretion of the Executive Director.

To apply for this position, please complete the application linked below. You will be asked to upload your resume and cover letter as PDFs. Applications missing any of the required materials will be considered incomplete and not reviewed. Please note that interviews for this role will begin on a rolling basis.

Important notes

• Contact [email protected] if you require specific accommodations at any point in the hiring process.

• Keep an eye on your promotions/spam folders to avoid missed communication.

• We are unable to provide status updates for each application we receive. If you reach out and do not hear back, please know it is not for lack of appreciation or interest, but simply for lack of staff capacity to respond to individual inquiries.

• The application will include a voluntary EEO survey so that we can monitor the applicant pool as a whole for representation and equal employment opportunities, and to evaluate our progress as an organization toward a diverse and inclusive workforce, which we believe is a pillar of a thriving democracy.

  • The categories used by the EEO survey are limited and may not reflect your lived experience; please feel free to opt out of any of the questions. Your responses to this survey are entirely separate from your application materials, are not accessible to those responsible for hiring decisions, and will not affect your candidacy in any way.