I did what I think is the largest piece of research on current and aspiring AI safety folk in Australia & New Zealand. I wanted to understand their career barriers so that I could then optimize my organization’s tactics to remove them.
Caveats
I am not a trained social scientist nor a statistician. There will be errors.
I’ve budgeted a few hours to write this up. So this is mostly about me posting the results for others to use. I hope they’re useful.
The process
I conducted 35 long form interviews with local Technical and Governance folk (about an hour each).
From this qualitative data I identified a long list of barriers to impact.
I then clustered the long list of barriers into 15 high level ones.
I also found two reasonably common symptoms of mental-ill health. Not nice TBH.
I used this list of 17 barriers / symptoms of mental-ill health in a survey. My goal was to measure how intense or common each barrier to impact was using Likert scales.
The survey scales
Likert scale for Barriers
Not at all (0)
Slightly (1)
Somewhat (2)
Moderately (3)
Very (4)
Extremely (5)
Likert scale for mental health related questions
Never (0)
Rarely (1)
Sometimes (2)
Often (3)
Always (4)
Demo breakdown of survey responders
By career stage
I am not currently working in an AI Safety role, but I aspire to in the future
20
I am currently working in an AI Safety role
17
Their ideal or current career stream
Ideal or current career path
Count
Technical work (e.g. research)
21
Governance and Policy
13
Movement Building
3
Results
Barriers
Overall barriers to impact (high to low)
Barrier
Intensity
How limited have you been by a lack of *local*, well-paying AI Safety jobs?
3.11
How much has a lack of mentorship hindered your progress in AI Safety?
3.03
How confused are you about the amount of upskilling you’d need to be successful in your most desired AI Safety job?
2.72
How difficult have you found creating and following a career plan (including upskilling) for AI Safety?
2.56
How limited have you been by a lack of high-quality *local* training programs for AI Safety careers?
2.49
How challenging have you found navigating the funding ecosystem in AI Safety (this could include grants, PhD programs, etc.)?
2.47
How unclear are you about where your skills could be best applied in AI Safety?
2.36
How limited have you been by a lack of strong *local* (i.e. in-person) networks for AI Safety careers?
2.33
How much have financial limitations hindered your pursuit of an AI Safety career (e.g., taking unpaid time off for upskilling)?
2.24
How confused are you about the types of paid jobs available in AI Safety?
2.11
How much has a lack of quality feedback on your AI Safety work hindered your progress?
2.08
How much has a lack of collaborators for AI Safety projects hindered your progress?
2.06
How difficult is it for you to stay up-to-date on relevant AI Safety opportunities (jobs, funding, networking, training)?
1.97
How difficult have you found accessing career advice specific to AI Safety?
1.75
To what extent have you experienced a desire to contribute to the *local* AI Safety movement, but been confused about how you can contribute (e.g. through volunteering)?
1.03
Governance & Policy career stream: barriers to impact (high to low)
Barrier (Governance)
Intensity (out of 5)
How limited have you been by a lack of *local*, well-paying AI Safety jobs?
3.46
How confused are you about the amount of upskilling you’d need to be successful in your most desired AI Safety job?
3.08
How much have financial limitations hindered your pursuit of an AI Safety career (e.g., taking unpaid time off for upskilling)?
2.92
How limited have you been by a lack of high-quality *local* training programs for AI Safety careers?
2.77
How challenging have you found navigating the funding ecosystem in AI Safety (this could include grants, PhD programs, etc.)?
2.69
How difficult have you found creating and following a career plan (including upskilling) for AI Safety?
2.69
How much has a lack of mentorship hindered your progress in AI Safety?
2.62
How limited have you been by a lack of strong *local* (i.e. in-person) networks for AI Safety careers?
2.54
How unclear are you about where your skills could be best applied in AI Safety?
2.46
How confused are you about the types of paid jobs available in AI Safety?
2.31
How difficult is it for you to stay up-to-date on relevant AI Safety opportunities (jobs, funding, networking, training)?
1.85
How difficult have you found accessing career advice specific to AI Safety?
1.77
How much has a lack of collaborators for AI Safety projects hindered your progress?
1.69
To what extent have you experienced a desire to contribute to the *local* AI Safety movement, but been confused about how you can contribute (e.g. through volunteering)?
1.38
How much has a lack of quality feedback on your AI Safety work hindered your progress?
1.23
Technical career stream: barriers to impact (high to low)
Barrier Technical
Intensity
How much has a lack of mentorship hindered your progress in AI Safety?
3.3
How limited have you been by a lack of *local*, well-paying AI Safety jobs?
2.81
How confused are you about the amount of upskilling you’d need to be successful in your most desired AI Safety job?
2.55
How much has a lack of quality feedback on your AI Safety work hindered your progress?
2.5
How difficult have you found creating and following a career plan (including upskilling) for AI Safety?
2.5
How limited have you been by a lack of high-quality *local* training programs for AI Safety careers?
2.33
How challenging have you found navigating the funding ecosystem in AI Safety (this could include grants, PhD programs, etc.)?
2.3
How unclear are you about where your skills could be best applied in AI Safety?
2.25
How limited have you been by a lack of strong *local* (i.e. in-person) networks for AI Safety careers?
2.15
How much has a lack of collaborators for AI Safety projects hindered your progress?
2.1
How confused are you about the types of paid jobs available in AI Safety?
2
How much have financial limitations hindered your pursuit of an AI Safety career (e.g., taking unpaid time off for upskilling)?
1.90
How difficult is it for you to stay up-to-date on relevant AI Safety opportunities (jobs, funding, networking, training)?
1.8
How difficult have you found accessing career advice specific to AI Safety?
1.65
To what extent have you experienced a desire to contribute to the *local* AI Safety movement, but been confused about how you can contribute (e.g. through volunteering)?
0.75
Governance vs Technical (differences in barriers to impact)
Barrier
Governance
Technical
Absolute difference
Proportional difference
How much has a lack of quality feedback on your AI Safety work hindered your progress?
1.23
2.50
1.27
0.68
To what extent have you experienced a desire to contribute to the *local* AI Safety movement, but been confused about how you can contribute (e.g. through volunteering)?
1.38
0.75
0.63
0.59
How much have financial limitations hindered your pursuit of an AI Safety career (e.g., taking unpaid time off for upskilling)?
2.92
1.90
1.02
0.42
How much has a lack of mentorship hindered your progress in AI Safety?
2.62
3.30
0.68
0.23
How much has a lack of collaborators for AI Safety projects hindered your progress?
1.69
2.10
0.41
0.22
How limited have you been by a lack of *local*, well-paying AI Safety jobs?
3.46
2.81
0.65
0.21
How confused are you about the amount of upskilling you’d need to be successful in your most desired AI Safety job?
3.08
2.55
0.53
0.19
How limited have you been by a lack of high-quality *local* training programs for AI Safety careers?
2.77
2.33
0.44
0.17
How limited have you been by a lack of strong *local* (i.e. in-person) networks for AI Safety careers?
2.54
2.15
0.39
0.17
How challenging have you found navigating the funding ecosystem in AI Safety (this could include grants, PhD programs, etc.)?
2.69
2.30
0.39
0.16
How confused are you about the types of paid jobs available in AI Safety?
2.31
2.00
0.31
0.14
How unclear are you about where your skills could be best applied in AI Safety?
2.46
2.25
0.21
0.09
How difficult have you found creating and following a career plan (including upskilling) for AI Safety?
2.69
2.50
0.19
0.07
How difficult have you found accessing career advice specific to AI Safety?
1.77
1.65
0.12
0.07
How difficult is it for you to stay up-to-date on relevant AI Safety opportunities (jobs, funding, networking, training)?
1.85
1.80
0.05
0.03
Mental ill-health
How often have you felt lonely or disconnected while pursuing an AI Safety career?
Overall
Total
%
Often (3)
12
33.33%
Sometimes (2)
12
33.33%
Rarely (1)
7
19.44%
Never (0)
3
8.33%
Always (4)
2
5.56%
By career stream
Governance and Policy
%
Movement Building
%
Technical work (e.g. research)
%
Always (4)
0
0.00%
0
0.00%
2
9.52%
Never (0)
1
7.69%
1
33.33%
1
4.76%
Often (3)
5
38.46%
2
66.67%
5
23.81%
Rarely (1)
3
23.08%
0
0.00%
4
19.05%
Sometimes (2)
4
30.77%
0
0.00%
8
38.10%
How often have you experienced negative emotions (low confidence, self-doubt, fear of failure) while pursuing an AI Safety career?
2/3 Aussie & NZ AI Safety folk often or sometimes feel lonely or disconnected (and 16 other barriers to impact)
I did what I think is the largest piece of research on current and aspiring AI safety folk in Australia & New Zealand. I wanted to understand their career barriers so that I could then optimize my organization’s tactics to remove them.
Caveats
I am not a trained social scientist nor a statistician. There will be errors.
I’ve budgeted a few hours to write this up. So this is mostly about me posting the results for others to use. I hope they’re useful.
The process
I conducted 35 long form interviews with local Technical and Governance folk (about an hour each).
From this qualitative data I identified a long list of barriers to impact.
I then clustered the long list of barriers into 15 high level ones.
I also found two reasonably common symptoms of mental-ill health. Not nice TBH.
I used this list of 17 barriers / symptoms of mental-ill health in a survey. My goal was to measure how intense or common each barrier to impact was using Likert scales.
The survey scales
Likert scale for Barriers
Not at all (0)
Slightly (1)
Somewhat (2)
Moderately (3)
Very (4)
Extremely (5)
Likert scale for mental health related questions
Never (0)
Rarely (1)
Sometimes (2)
Often (3)
Always (4)
Demo breakdown of survey responders
By career stage
Their ideal or current career stream
Results
Barriers
Overall barriers to impact (high to low)
3.11
3.03
2.72
2.56
2.49
2.47
2.36
2.33
2.24
2.11
2.08
2.06
1.97
1.75
1.03
Governance & Policy career stream: barriers to impact (high to low)
3.46
3.08
2.92
2.77
2.69
2.69
2.62
2.54
2.46
2.31
1.85
1.77
1.69
1.38
1.23
Technical career stream: barriers to impact (high to low)
3.3
2.81
2.55
2.5
2.5
2.33
2.3
2.25
2.15
2.1
2
1.90
1.8
1.65
0.75
Governance vs Technical (differences in barriers to impact)
1.23
2.50
1.27
0.68
1.38
0.75
0.63
0.59
2.92
1.90
1.02
0.42
2.62
3.30
0.68
0.23
1.69
2.10
0.41
0.22
3.46
2.81
0.65
0.21
3.08
2.55
0.53
0.19
2.77
2.33
0.44
0.17
2.54
2.15
0.39
0.17
2.69
2.30
0.39
0.16
2.31
2.00
0.31
0.14
2.46
2.25
0.21
0.09
2.69
2.50
0.19
0.07
1.77
1.65
0.12
0.07
1.85
1.80
0.05
0.03
Mental ill-health
How often have you felt lonely or disconnected while pursuing an AI Safety career?
Overall
By career stream
9.52%
4.76%
23.81%
19.05%
38.10%
How often have you experienced negative emotions (low confidence, self-doubt, fear of failure) while pursuing an AI Safety career?
Overall
By career stream
14.29%
33.33%
33.33%
14.29%
0.00%