About the organization

MATS finds and trains talented individuals for what we see as the world's most urgent and talent-constrained problem: reducing risks from unaligned artificial intelligence. We believe ambitious researchers from a variety of backgrounds have the potential to meaningfully contribute to alignment, control, security, and governance research. Through our research fellowship, we provide mentorship, training, professional network, and financial support to accelerate their careers and increase their impact.

Since 2021, we have trained over 630 researchers. 75% of pre-2026 fellows continue to work in AI alignment. 10% have co-founded organizations. Our fellows have produced 215+ research papers with 17,000+ citations. And we are just getting started: in the coming year we will expand our program to support even more researchers.

About the role

MATS is looking for a sharp, discreet, and highly organized Executive Assistant to support CEO Ryan Kidd and COO Christian Smith. This is a high-trust role at the center of a fast-growing, high-impact nonprofit: you'll manage complex calendars, coordinate travel across Berkeley and London, prepare materials for board and donor meetings, and act as a force multiplier so both leaders can focus their time on fundraising, strategy, and scaling the AI safety field. You'll need to context-switch comfortably between the CEO's external-facing, fundraising-heavy schedule and the COO's finance- and operations-heavy workload.

This role sits within the People team and reports to the Head of People, consistent with how all MATS executive assistants are managed. You'll receive day-to-day direction and priorities from Ryan and Christian, while the People team handles your management, performance, and career development.

What you'll do

Calendar & scheduling: Manage complex, shifting calendars for both executives, proactively resolving conflicts and prioritizing high-value meetings (donors, board members, mentors, partner organizations).
Travel coordination: Book and manage domestic and international travel, including trips between the Berkeley and London offices, conferences, and donor visits; handle logistics, itineraries, and expense reconciliation.
Communications: Draft and proofread correspondence, prepare briefing documents, and manage inboxes with sound judgment about what needs the executives' direct attention.
Meeting support: Prepare agendas, materials, and minutes for board meetings, leadership syncs, and donor/investor calls; track follow-up action items to completion.
Financial & operations admin: Support Christian with expense tracking, reimbursements, vendor coordination, and other light operational/financial admin as needed.
Event coordination: Assist with planning internal offsites, board meetings and donor or partner gatherings.
Confidentiality & judgment: Handle sensitive information (financial, personnel, donor) with absolute discretion, and represent MATS professionally in all external interactions.
Special projects: Take on ad hoc projects that free up leadership bandwidth: research, vendor comparisons, process documentation, and light project management.

What we're looking for

Experience: 3+ years of experience as an Executive Assistant, Chief of Staff, or in a similarly high-trust support role, ideally supporting founders, executives, or senior leadership.
Organization: You can juggle two executives' priorities at once without dropping details, and you know how to triage what's urgent versus what can wait.
Judgment & autonomy: Comfortable making decisions on scheduling, correspondence, and logistics without needing every choice signed off.
Communication: Clear, professional written and verbal communication; comfortable interfacing with board members, donors, and external partners.
Discretion: A demonstrated ability to keep sensitive financial, personnel, and strategic information confidential.
Mission alignment: Genuine interest in AI safety or the nonprofit research/education space is a strong plus, though not required.
Tech-savvy: Comfortable with calendar, travel, and productivity tools (e.g., Google Workspace, project management software); willingness to learn MATS-specific systems.

Nice to haves

Prior experience supporting a CEO and a finance-focused executive simultaneously.
Experience in a startup, nonprofit, or research organization environment.
Familiarity with international travel logistics (US/UK).
Light bookkeeping or expense-management experience.

About the Compensation

The essential skills listed above contain the basic requirements, and align with the lower end of this range.
MATS provides in-office, catered lunches and dinners to employees on workdays.
Paid work trips, including staff retreats, business trips, and relevant conferences.
Funding and support for professional development.
17 days of annual paid time off for Berkeley-based employees.
Flexibility for hybrid work (but not for fully remote work).
Collaborative and intellectually stimulating work environment.
Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance.
Both Roth 401(k) and Traditional 401(k) for US-based employees.

Working hours and location

40 hours per week. Successful candidates can expect to spend most of their time working in person from our main office in Berkeley, California. We are open to hybrid working arrangements for exceptional candidates.

Note while applying

If you use an LLM chatbot or other AI tools in this application, please follow the norms here. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. MATS uses LLMs to help draft job descriptions, identify candidates to source, and transcribe interviews.

MATS is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment at the forefront of our field. We encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences.

Join us in shaping the future of AI safety & security research!

Executive Assistant