Cyber Security Engineer - Cyber & Autonomous Systems Team

AI Security Institute (AISI); Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 145,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Learning & development stipend

25 days annual leave

Pension contribution 28.97%

Opportunities to publish

Job summary

AI Security Institute in London is seeking exceptional cybersecurity experts to advance frontier AI security. You will design cyber ranges, run pre-deployment tests, and validate model behaviours, while collaborating with engineers and researchers who value autonomy and impact.

You will contribute to evaluations, reports, and publications, with mentorship from senior staff and opportunities to influence policy and practice in AI safety.

Qualifications

• Strong Python skills with automation or security tooling.
• Experience in at least one area of cybersecurity red-teaming: penetration testing, cyber range design, CTFs, automated security testing tools, bug bounties/vulnerability research/patching.
• Strong interest in helping improve the safety of AI systems.
• Familiarity with virtualization technologies such as Proxmox VE and IaC approaches is a plus.
• Ability to communicate research findings to technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Familiarity with cybersecurity tools like packet capture, testing frameworks, and reverse engineering tools.
• Active involvement in the cybersecurity community and automation/tooling impact experience.

Responsibilities

• Design cyber ranges and CTF-style challenges for evaluating AI system cybersecurity tasks.
• Build agentic scaffolding to evaluate frontier models with tools like packet capture and testing frameworks.
• Design metrics and interpret results of cyber capability evaluations.
• Collaborate with engineers to keep evaluation environments robust and scalable.
• Produce reports, papers and blogs to share findings with stakeholders.
• Keep up-to-date with related research and contribute to AI cyber risk understanding.
• Contribute to the team’s broader AI safety research initiatives.

Skills

Strong Python

Penetration testing

Cyber range design

CTFs

Automated security tools

Vulnerability research

Tools

Proxmox VE

Job description

About The AI Security Institute

The AI Security Institute is the world's largest and best-funded team dedicated to understanding advanced AI risks and translating that knowledge into action. We’re in the heart of the UK government with direct lines to No. 10 (the Prime Minister's office), and we work with frontier developers and governments globally.

Deadline for applying to this role is 11thOctober 2026, end of day, anywhere on Earth.

About The Team

AI capabilities in cybersecurity and autonomy are advancing faster than at any point in history. Frontier models can now work through multi-step network intrusions, discover and exploit software vulnerabilities, and carry out long-horizon technical tasks with increasing independence.

These are extraordinary tools for scientific and economic progress, but also have the potential for serious harm if misused or deployed without adequate oversight, as seen in the recent cybersecurity incidents.

The team evaluates the capability of both frontier and open-weight AI models in cybersecurity, autonomy and AI R&D, ensuring the UK government and its partners have an accurate view of risks and capabilities. We use realistic cyber ranges and a large CTF suite for our evaluations, run pre-deployment testing of frontier models, and collaborate with our partners across UK government, frontier labs, and NCSC.

Role Description

We are looking for exceptional cybersecurity experts at all experience levels, from junior through to senior or staff, who want to work at the forefront of frontier AI security.

In this role, you’ll work with cutting-edge technologies on research problems with real-world impact, and receive mentorship and coaching from your manager and the technical leads on your team.

Your day-to-day work might include building state-of-the-art evaluations (e.g., cyber ranges), running pre-deployment testing exercises (e.g., Claude Mythos Preview), validating novel model behaviours (e.g., models cheating in evaluations), and answering timely research questions (e.g., the capabilities of open-weight models). You would be working alongside engineers and researchers who care deeply about the impact of their work, take pride in their craft, and have a high level of autonomy.

Core Responsibilities

• Evaluation Design & Development (60%):
  • Design cyber ranges and CTF-style challenges for automatically grading AI system performance on cybersecurity tasks
  • Build agentic scaffolding to evaluate frontier models, equipping them with tools such as network packet capture utilities, penetration testing frameworks, and reverse engineering/disassembly tools
  • Design metrics and interpret results of cyber capability evaluations
• Infrastructure engineering (30%):
  • Work alongside other engineers to ensure evaluation environments are robust and scalable
• Research & Communication (10%):
  • Write reports, research papers and blog posts to share findings with stakeholders
  • Keep up-to-date with related research taking place in other organisations
  • Contribute to AISI's broader understanding of AI cyber risks

Example projects

• Onboard and integrate new cyber ranges into our evaluation pipeline
• Conduct agent research to improve the cyber capabilities of our agents
• Improve grading and scoring methodologies for automated evaluation tasks
• Integrate defensive telemetry and simulated users into ranges to increase their realism
• Collaborate with government partners on joint research publications

Impact

Your work will directly shape the UK government's understanding of AI cyber capabilities, inform safety standards for frontier AI systems, and contribute to the global effort to develop rigorous evaluation methodologies. The evaluations you build will help determine how advanced AI systems are assessed before deployment.

Who We're Looking For

• Essential
  • Strong Python skills with experience writing scripts for automation or security tooling
  • Proven experience in at least one of the following areas of cybersecurity red-teaming:
    • Penetration testing
    • Cyber range design
    • Competing in or designing CTFs
    • Developing automated security testing tools
    • Bug bounties, vulnerability research, or exploit discovery and patching
  • Strong interest in helping improve the safety of AI systems
• Desirable
  • Familiarity with virtualisation technologies such as Proxmox VE and infrastructure-as-code approaches to enable reproducible test environments to be rapidly spun up for testing
  • Ability to communicate the outcomes of cybersecurity research to a range of technical and non-technical audiences
  • Familiarity with cybersecurity tools such as network packet capture utilities, penetration testing frameworks, and reverse engineering/disassembly tools
  • Active in the cybersecurity community with a track record of keeping up to date with new research
  • Previous experience building or measuring the impact of automation tools on cyber red-teaming workflows

What We Offer

• Impact you couldn't have anywhere else
  • Incredibly talented, mission-driven and supportive colleagues.
  • Direct influence on how frontier AI is governed and deployed globally.
  • Work with the Prime Minister’s AI Advisor and leading AI companies.
  • Opportunity to shape the first & best-resourced public-interest research team focused on AI security.
• Resources & access
  • Pre-release access to multiple frontier models and ample compute.
  • Extensive operational support so you can focus on research and ship quickly.
  • Work with experts across national security, policy, AI research and adjacent sciences.
• Growth & autonomy
  • If you’re talented and driven, you’ll own important problems early.
  • 5 days off and annual stipends for learning and development, and funding for conferences and external collaborations.
  • Freedom to pursue research bets without product pressure.
  • Opportunities to publish and collaborate externally.
• Life & family*
  • Modern central London office, or where applicable, option to work in similar government offices in Birmingham, Cardiff, Darlington, Edinburgh, Salford or Bristol.
  • Hybrid working, flexibility for occasional remote work abroad and stipends for work-from-home equipment.
  • At least 25 days’ annual leave, 8 public holidays, extra team-wide breaks and 3 days off for volunteering.
  • Generous paid parental leave (36 weeks of UK statutory leave shared between parents + 3 extra paid weeks + option for additional unpaid time).
  • On top of your salary, we contribute 28.97% of your base salary to your pension.
  • Discounts and benefits for cycling to work, donations and retail/gyms.
  • These benefits apply to direct employees. Benefits may differ for individuals joining through other employment arrangements such as secondments.

Salary

Annual salary is benchmarked to role scope and relevant experience. Most offers land between £65,000 and £145,000 made up of a base salary plus a technical allowance (take-home salary = base + technical allowance). An additional 28.97% employer pension contribution is paid on the base salary.

This role sits outside of the DDaT pay framework given the scope of this role requires in depth technical expertise in frontier AI safety, robustness and advanced AI architectures.

The Full Range Of Salaries Are Available Below

• Level 3: £65,000–£75,000 (Base £39,850 + Technical Allowance £25,150–£35,150)
• Level 4: £85,000–£95,000 (Base £47,355 + Technical Allowance £37,645–£47,645)
• Level 5: £105,000–£115,000 (Base £61,620 + Technical Allowance £43,380–£53,380)
• Level 6: £125,000–£135,000 (Base £74,605 + Technical Allowance £50,395–£60,395)
• Level 7: £145,000 (Base £74,605 + Technical Allowance £70,395)

Additional Information

Use of AI in Applications

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Internal Fraud Database

The Internal Fraud function of the Fraud, Error, Debt and Grants Function at the Cabinet Office processes details of civil servants who have been dismissed for committing internal fraud, or who would have been dismissed had they not resigned. The Cabinet Office receives the details from participating government organisations of civil servants who have been dismissed, or who would have been dismissed had they not resigned, for internal fraud. In instances such as this, civil servants are then banned for 5 years from further employment in the civil service. The Cabinet Office then processes this data and discloses a limited dataset back to DLUHC as a participating government organisations. DLUHC then carry out the pre employment checks so as to detect instances where known fraudsters are attempting to reapply for roles in the civil service. In this way, the policy is ensured and the repetition of internal fraud is prevented. For more information please see - Internal Fraud Register.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check and get baseline personnel security standard (BPSS) clearance before they can be appointed. Additionally, there is a strong preference for eligibility for counter-terrorist check (CTC) clearance. Some roles may require higher levels of clearance, and we will state this by exception in the job advertisement. See our vetting charter here.

Nationality requirements

We may be able to offer roles to applicant from any nationality or background. As such we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet the standard nationality requirements (opens in a new window).

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window). As part of the application process, we monitor statistics on D&I. You can see how we process this data here: Recruitment privacy notice - GOV.UK.