[Career review] “AI policy in the US government” by Avital Morris

[Career review] “AI policy in the US government” by Avital Morris

The US federal government has jurisdiction over the most prominent AI companies in the world — and the people working inside it may have more influence over AI's future than almost anyone else. But government AI policy work is hard to break into, politically constrained, and carries a real risk of doing harm. Learn what it actually takes to build a career in US government AI policy: which roles and agencies matter most, what skills you'll need beyond technical expertise, and how to think honestly about whether Washington's political culture is a place where you'll thrive. Narrated by AI. --- Outline: (00:10) Summary (01:50) Recommended (02:00) Review status (02:05) Why work in AI policy within the US government? (04:04) Would you be a good fit? (04:08) What skills are needed to succeed? (06:02) What experience is useful (07:02) What else do you need? (08:12) Downsides to working in US government AI policy roles (08:18) Risk of doing harm (09:50) Risk of burnout (10:07) Top organisations (10:54) Executive branch (10:59) Executive Office of the President (12:04) Departments and agencies (13:44) Congress (16:38) State governments (17:37) Government contractors (18:42) Next steps (18:46) If you're ready to apply for jobs (18:55) If you need to build career capital (21:04) Speak with us (21:25) Learn more (21:28) Top recommendations (22:36) Further recommendations (23:44) Acknowledgements --- First published: June 11th, 2026 Source: https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/ai-policy-us-government [https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/ai-policy-us-government?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration] --- Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO [https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=80000hours&utm_campaign=ai_narration].

[Career review] “Pandemic prevention and biosecurity” by Aaron Gertler, Gregory Lewis

Explore how careers in biosecurity research, policy, and entrepreneurship can help reduce risks like engineered pandemics. Narrated by AI. --- Outline: (02:18) Recommended (02:27) Review status (02:32) Why work on pandemic prevention? (02:37) It could save millions of lives (03:32) It isnt very speculative (04:23) There are many tractable approaches (05:27) It doesnt require working on AI (06:28) What does this path involve? (07:39) Technical careers (09:28) Policy careers (11:00) Entrepreneurial and operations careers (13:41) Other careers (14:36) Could you be a good fit? (14:40) The best backgrounds and skill sets (19:24) What do you want from a job? (21:05) Four ways to test your fit (22:51) Guidance for experienced professionals (23:51) Find jobs in pandemic prevention and biosecurity (24:37) Learn more (24:40) Top recommendations (25:20) Other resources (26:17) Further recommendations The original text contained 1 footnote which was omitted from this narration. --- First published: October 19th, 2021 Last updated: April 11th, 2023 Source: https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/pandemic-prevention-biosecurity [https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/pandemic-prevention-biosecurity?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration] --- Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO [https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=80000hours&utm_campaign=ai_narration].

“What to aim for: Part 1 We reviewed over 60 studies about what makes for a dream job. Here’s what we found.” by Benjamin Todd

We all want to find a dream job that’s enjoyable and meaningful, but what does that actually mean? Some people imagine that the answer will come to them in a flash of insight, while others think what matters is that their dream job is easy and well paid. At 80,000 Hours, we’ve reviewed three decades of research into what makes for a satisfying career, drawing on hundreds of studies, and didn’t find much evidence for either conclusion. Instead, we found five key ingredients of a dream job. They don’t include income, nor are they as simple as “following your passion.” What’s crucial is to get good at something that helps other people. Let’s start with where we go wrong. The bottom line: What makes for a dream job? Decades of psychology research suggests there are five key things to look for in a dream job: Work that’s engaging hour-to-hour Work that helps others Source: https://80000hours.org/career-guide/dream-job/ [https://80000hours.org/career-guide/dream-job/] Narrated by the author. --- Outline: (00:00) What makes for a dream job? (00:35) Where we go wrong (13:59) What you should really aim for in a dream job (21:50) Don't follow your passion — instead, do what matters (24:30) How to put these ideas into practice --- First published: May 12th, 2026 Source: https://80000hours.org/career-guide/dream-job [https://80000hours.org/career-guide/dream-job?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=human_narration]

[Career review] “Macrostrategy research” by Zershaaneh Qureshi

What if your job was to think carefully about the long-term future of humanity? Macrostrategy research is one of the most neglected (and potentially most important) career paths focused on tackling the world's most pressing problems. We break down what macrostrategy researchers actually do, why the rise of advanced AI makes their work more urgent than ever, and what it takes to succeed in a field where the questions are enormous, the feedback loops are slow, and the number of people working on it can be counted in the dozens. Narrated by AI. --- Outline: (00:10) Summary (02:12) Recommended (02:21) Review status (02:26) What is macrostrategy research, and why work on it? (06:08) Why work on macrostrategy research? (08:02) What are the downsides to working on macrostrategy? (08:07) You might struggle to get a job (08:54) It may be difficult to make progress (10:22) It might be hard to influence decision makers (11:31) It might be better to focus on more speculative issues later (13:21) Would you be a good fit for macrostrategy research? (13:26) What skills and traits are needed to succeed? (15:29) What experience is useful? (17:16) Non-research paths (17:52) Example people (17:56) Rose Hadshar (18:53) Top organisations (21:01) Next steps (21:05) If youre ready to apply for jobs (21:27) If you need, test your fit or build career capital first (23:49) If you want to learn more (26:48) Speak with us (26:51) Want one-on-one advice on pursuing this path? The original text contained 4 footnotes which were omitted from this narration. --- First published: April 16th, 2026 Source: https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/macrostrategy-research [https://80000hours.org/career-reviews/macrostrategy-research?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration] --- Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO [https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=80000hours&utm_campaign=ai_narration].

[Problem profile] “Risks from power-seeking AI systems” by Cody Fenwick, Zershaaneh Qureshi

The future of AI is difficult to predict. But while AI systems could have substantial positive effects, there's a growing consensus about the dangers of AI. Narrated by the author. --- Outline: (00:00) Risks from power-seeking AI systems (00:16) Introduction (02:08) Summary (03:03) Why are the risks from power-seeking AI a pressing world problem? (04:42) Section 1: Humans will likely build advanced AI systems with long-term goals (10:32) Section 2: AIs with long-term goals may be inclined to seek power (25:26) Section 3: These power-seeking AI systems could successfully disempower humanity (37:33) Section 4. People might create power-seeking AI systems without enough safeguards, despite the risks (46:36) Section 5: Work on this problem is neglected and tractable (58:19) Section 6: What are the arguments against working on this problem? (01:24:07) Section 7: How you can help (01:27:55) Thank you for listening --- First published: July 17th, 2025 Source: https://80000hours.org/problem-profiles/risks-from-power-seeking-ai [https://80000hours.org/problem-profiles/risks-from-power-seeking-ai?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=human_narration]