Cillian Crosson

Talos Institute is a new organisation focused on EU AI policy careers. 

Talos is spinning out of [Training for Good](https://www.trainingforgood.com/) and will launch in 2024 with the [EU Tech Policy Fellowship](https://www.techpolicyfellowship.eu/) as its flagship programme. We envision Talos expanding its activities and quickly growing into a key organisation in the AI governance landscape.

**EU Tech Policy Fellowship**
The EU Tech Policy Fellowship is Talos Institute’s flagship programme. It is a 7-month programme enabling ambitious graduates to launch European policy careers reducing risks from artificial intelligence. From 2024, it will run twice per year. It includes:

- **8-week training** that explores the intricacies of AI governance in Europe
- A week-long **policymaking summit in Brussels** to connect with others working in the space
- **6-month placement** at a prominent think tank working on AI policy (e.g. [Centre for European Policy Studies](https://www.ceps.eu/), [The Future Society](https://thefuturesociety.org/))

**Success to date**
The EU Tech Policy Fellowship appears to have had a significant impact to date. Since 2021, we’ve supported ~30 EU Tech Policy Fellows and successfully transitioned a significant number to work on AI governance in Europe. For example:

- Several work at key think tanks (e.g. [The Future Society](https://thefuturesociety.org/), the [International Center for Future Generations](https://icfg.eu/), and the [Centre for European Policy Studies](https://www.ceps.eu/))
- One has co-founded an AI think tank working directly with the UN and co-authored a piece for The Economist with Gary Marcus
- Others are advising MEPs and key institutions on the EU AI Act and related legislation

We’re conducting an external evaluation and expect to publish the results in early 2024. Initial indicators suggest that the programme has been highly effective to date. As a result, we have decided to double the programme’s size by running two cohorts per year. We now expect to support 30+ fellows in 2024 alone.

**Future directions**
We can imagine Talos Institute growing in a number of ways. Future activities could include things like:

- Creating career advice resources tailored to careers in European policy (especially for those interested in AI & biosecurity careers). Similar to what [Horizon has done in the US](https://emergingtechpolicy.org/).
- Community-building activities for those working in AI Governance in Europe (eg. retreats to facilitate connections, help create shared priorities, identify needs in the space, and incubate new projects).
- Hosting events in Brussels educating established policy makers on risks from advanced AI
- Activities that help grow the number of people interested in considering policy careers focused on risks from advanced AI, e.g. workshops like this 
- Expanding beyond AI governance to run similar placement programmes for other problems in Europe (e.g. biosecurity).
- Establishing the organisation as a credible think tank in Europe. |This would involve hiring researchers in-house and producing useful object-level output.
- Producing media and content related to AI governance in EU

It’s unclear how promising any of the above activities would be. Their inclusion here is not necessarily an endorsement. Instead, we suspect that an incoming Executive Director might explore some of these options, perhaps alongside other activities that are not listed above.

**Budget & room for more funding**
- Our 2024 budget is $808k
- Our 3 year budget is $3.7m
- Our current balance is $570k
- Our room for more funding is $240k-$3.1m 

**What your dollar buys**
- $2,500: An additional participant on our [EUTPF training track](https://www.techpolicyfellowship.eu/programme)
- $15,000: A 6-month placement at a leading EU think tank working on AI governance for a talented early-career individual
- $35,000: A week-long policymaking summit in Brussels for ~15 early-career individuals
- $100,000: A new Executive Director grow Talos into a key organisation in the AI governance landscape

Cillian Crosson

Projects