Limited-term, full-time from May 2026 to June 2027, with an opportunity for extension pending funding availability and programmatic need.
Salary range: $190,000 to $220,000 annually, dependent on expertise and experience.
Location: California (hybrid), reimbursements for regular travel to Sacramento available.
Deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Timely applications are strongly encouraged.

Modeled after the position of Science Advisor to the President via the White House Office of Science Technology Policy (OSTP), the Science Advisor will support and advise CalOES on AI policy, safety, governance, and adoption issues. The Science Advisor will work with science and technology leads from within and beyond the State government. This position builds upon the depth and breadth of science and technology expertise within the placement office. The Science Advisor also helps to support executive-level efforts on cross-cutting issues by drawing upon an independent science perspective from external expertise when appropriate.

This position will be formally employed by the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) – a non-partisan, nonprofit organization established by the Legislature in 1988 with the goal of connecting leading experts in science and technology with California state policymakers – and placed in CalOES on a full-time basis via a formal memorandum of understanding between CCST and the placement office. The Science Advisor will be part of the placement office’s senior staff and participate in senior staff meetings.

The Science Advisor to CalOES will serve as technical advisor on state-level AI policy and governance issues, in particular, recent legislation relating to AI safety, transparency, catastrophic risk management, critical safety incidents, and other AI policy issues. It is critical that the Science Advisor be highly regarded and trusted as an honest broker by leaders from industry, academia, communities, and the public sector.

This position requires an ability to exercise a broad range of knowledge on technical, executive management, political, and governmental issues. The Science Advisor must also be adept at communicating complex ideas in a clear and concise manner and be well-versed in diplomacy. Success in this position will depend greatly on the Science Advisor’s ability to build and maintain partnerships across the breadth of disciplines and communities represented by CalOES.