Chief Editor - Times of AI

VAP Group; United Arab Emirates; On-site; AED 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

VAP Group in Dubai is seeking a seasoned Editor-in-Chief to lead its digital news operation, shaping editorial vision, voice, and strategy across breaking news and deep dives. You will sign off on major stories and uphold ethical standards while guiding a distributed editorial team.

You will partner with SEO, analytics, and revenue teams to grow audience, manage budget and partnerships, and represent the publication externally at events and panels.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of journalism/editorial experience with 3+ years in senior leadership.
• Proven track record in scaling a digital news publication.
• Strong ethics, accuracy, and sourcing standards (AP/house style).
• Experience managing distributed teams and freelancers.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; public representation of brand.
• Knowledge of WordPress publishing workflows, SEO, and analytics.

Responsibilities

• Define and refine editorial vision, voice, and content strategy.
• Hold final editorial authority on major stories and risk.
• Set and enforce editorial policy separating content types.
• Recruit, mentor and manage senior editorial staff; build newsroom culture.
• Own content roadmap balancing breaking news, evergreen guides, and thought leadership.
• Oversee Global Ai Show event agenda and partnerships.
• Represent publication externally in media appearances and industry events.
• Oversee crisis and correction protocols, ensure accuracy and sourcing.
• Collaborate with SEO, growth, and revenue teams to align output with traffic and business goals.
• Monitor industry trends and audience data to identify coverage areas and formats.
• Approve editorial hires and freelancer agreements; budget allocation.

Skills

Editorial leadership

Editorial ethics

News judgment

People leadership

Communication

Sourcing & fact-checking

Tools

WordPress

SEO fundamentals

Content analytics

Job description

Location & Employment

Location: Hybrid (Dubai)
Employment Type: Full-time

Key Responsibilities

• Define and continuously refine Times of AI's editorial vision, voice, and content strategy in line with audience needs and market positioning.
• Hold final editorial authority and sign-off on major stories, investigations, exclusives, and any content carrying legal, reputational, or ethical risk.
• Set and enforce the Editorial Policy, ensuring clear separation between editorial content, sponsored/pressrelease content, and advertising.
• Recruit, mentor, and manage the Managing Editor and senior editorial staff; build a high‑performing, accountable newsroom culture.
• Own the annual/quarterly content roadmap, balancing breaking news, evergreen guides, market analysis, and thought leadership.
• Responsible for the comprehensive management and oversight of the Global Ai Show's event agenda www.globalaishow.com.
• Represent the publication externally: media appearances, industry panels, partnerships with events (e.g., the Global AI Show series), and relationships with PR agencies, exchanges, studios, or vendors relevant to the vertical.
• Oversee crisis and correction protocols; ensure factual accuracy, proper sourcing, and timely corrections across all published content.
• Partner with SEO, growth, and revenue teams to align editorial output with traffic, engagement, and business goals without compromising editorial integrity.
• Monitor industry trends, competitor coverage, and audience data to identify new coverage areas and content formats (video, newsletters, social).
• Approve editorial hires, freelancer/contributor agreements, and editorial budget allocation.

Requirements

• 8+ years of journalism/editorial experience, including at least 3 years in a senior editorial leadership role (Editor-in-Chief, Chief Editor, or equivalent).
• Proven track record of building or scaling a digital news publication, ideally in a fast-moving, technical, or niche vertical.
• Exceptional news judgment, editorial ethics, and command of AP/house style, fact-checking, and sourcing standards.
• Strong people‑leadership skills with experience managing distributed editorial teams and freelance contributor networks.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable representing the brand publicly.
• Working knowledge of WordPress-based publishing workflows, SEO fundamentals, and content analytics tools.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience covering the specific vertical at senior editorial level.
• Existing network of industry contacts, spokespeople, and press contacts relevant to the beat.
• Experience negotiating and managing media partnerships with industry conferences and events.
• Familiarity with disclosure requirements for sponsored content, press releases, and paid coverage in digital media.

Success Metrics / KPIs

• Editorial quality: accuracy rate, correction turnaround time, and adherence to editorial policy.
• Audience growth: organic traffic, returning readers, and newsletter subscriber growth.
• Team performance: retention of senior editorial staff, output consistency, and coverage speed on breaking news.
• Brand reputation: media citations, event partnerships secured, and industry recognition.