Innovation Lead - Frontier AI

Job summary

Context:

The Innovation Lead will operate within the AIDE Team.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is recognised as one of the six frontier technologies. AI is playing an increasingly crucial role in driving technological advancements and economic growth, transforming entire industries by enhancing efficiencies, enabling innovation and creating new opportunities for businesses and society.

The AI Opportunities Action Plan sets out an ambitious roadmap for the UK to strengthen its global leadership in AI. The main aims are to strengthen the UK’s position as a global hub for AI R&D, to maximise the UK’s stake in frontier AI, to promote AI adoption in both the public and private sector across the UK with targeted initiatives and to accelerate AI-enabled scientific breakthroughs.

The role holder will operate within the AI & Digital directorate which is part of the Innovate UK Digital and Technologies domain.

We particularly welcome female applicants as women are under-represented within Innovate UK in this type of role.

Job Purpose:

The Innovation Lead will play a central role in shaping and delivering Innovate UK’s programmes to strengthen the UK’s foundational capabilities in AI and digital technologies. The initial focus will be on the Sovereign AI programme, identifying and structuring opportunities that build strategic advantage for the UK in frontier AI technologies and its critical inputs. Over time, the role will help design and deliver a broader portfolio of activities to develop foundational AI capabilities across the UK innovation system, with emphasis on novel AI paradigms and multidisciplinary opportunities with novel compute, cyber and quantum.

Working as part of the AI & Digital team, the role holder will lead the development of innovation programmes, from early opportunity framing through to competition design, portfolio management and impact evaluation. They will work closely with industry, academia, government, and other funders to ensure that Innovate UK’s investments are well-targeted, coherent with wider UKRI and government objectives, and capable of unlocking long-term UK capability.

Job description

Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities:

• Taking a leading role in the development and delivery of Innovate UK’s innovation strategy for AI & ML and the wider AI and Digital strategy.
• Helping to shape and deliver programmes, coordinating with key delivery partners, and internal Innovate UK programme operations teams to launch, execute and evaluate competitive funding opportunities for UK businesses.
• Prioritising and coordinating tasks given stakeholder needs and available resources and ensuring the outputs of the work are high quality, and appropriately shared and promoted.
• Leading business development activities and contributing to business cases for investment in areas of strategic opportunity.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with delivery partners, as well as relevant bodies and networks to build truly UK-wide innovation programmes with significant ambition and delivery capability.
• Working effectively with partners, across UKRI and externally, to share data and insight about digital innovation markets and capabilities and to identify cross-sector digital innovation opportunities.
• Support colleagues within the AI and Digital team to deliver key strategic innovation programmes across a number of digital technologies and sectors.
• Supporting the wider organisation to meet strategic objectives as appropriate.
• Representing the team and organisation at meetings, workshops and conferences including giving presentations

Person specification

Person Specification:

We are looking for someone with commercial awareness who can manage contending priorities and a sophisticated partner environment. You will be able to make sense of multiple data sources, to establish underlying patterns and articulate a clear and compelling vision of what needs to be done. A great teammate, willing to share knowledge with others and learn from them. Able to self-start when needed.

The role holder will be motivated to achieve goals that enable the success of others (colleagues and UK companies). The successful candidate will be adept at working collaboratively with and across industry, research, UKRI and government, building consensus and maintaining strong relationships.

Experience & Qualifications:

Essential –

• Computer Science Degree or post-graduate qualification, or equivalent experience (S)
• Experience of working within a digital innovation environment with an understanding of major trends. (S&I)
• Up-to-date of frontier AI, Machine Learning and Digital technologies, and their applications in the wider UK economy. (S&I)
• Proven ability to direct innovation processes in a commercial environment. (S)
• Demonstrable experience of leading the development and successful implementation of strategic programmes. (I)
• Proven ability to understand the strategic potential of emerging digital technologies and communicate at senior levels. (S)
• A clear track-record of delivery against tight deadlines. (S)
• Ability to deal with ambiguity while acting and thinking strategically (S&I)
• Critical thinking(I)
• Familiarity with the wider research environment.(S&I)

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £58,589, Innovate UK contributes £16,973 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension (opens in a new window) with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

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 (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

1st Interview incl presentation.

Interviews will either take place remotely via Teams or in person face to face.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Medical

Successful candidates will be expected to have a medical.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.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.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Recruitment@ukri.org
• Email : Recruitment@ukri.org

Recruitment team

• Email : Recruitment@ukri.org