The European Commission Seeks Experts for Its AI Scientific Panel
The European Commission is now accepting applications for the Scientific Panel of Independent Experts, focusing on general-purpose AI (GPAI). This panel will support the enforcement of the AI Act, and forms part of the institutional scaffolding designed to ensure that GPAI oversight is anchored in technical and scientific legitimacy.
The panel will advise the EU AI Office and national authorities on:
Systemic risks associated with GPAI models
Classification of GPAI models (including systemic-risk designation)
This is the institutional embodiment of what many in this community have been asking for: real technical expertise informing regulatory decision-making.
Who Should Apply?
The Commission is selecting 60 experts for a renewable 24-month term.
Members are appointed in a personal capacity and must be fully independent of any GPAI provider (i.e. no employment, consulting, or financial interest). Names and declarations of interest will be made public.
Relevant expertise must include at least one of the following:
Model evaluation and risk analysis: Red-teaming, capability forecasting, adversarial testing, human uplift studies, deployment evaluations
Provider-side security: Prevention of leakage, theft, circumvention of safety controls
Emergent model risks: Deception, self-replication, miscoordination, alignment drift, long-horizon planning
Compute and infrastructure: Compute auditing, resource thresholds, verification protocols
Eligibility:
PhD in a relevant field OR equivalent track record
Proven scientific impact in AI/GPAI research or systemic-risk analysis
Must demonstrate full independence from GPAI providers
Citizenship: At least 80% of panel members must be from EU/EEA countries. The other 20% can be from anywhere, so international researchers are eligible.
Even if you’re selected for the Scientific Panel, you are still allowed to carry out your own independent research as long as it is not for GPAI providers and you comply with confidentiality obligations.
This isn’t a full-time, 40-hour-per-week commitment. Members are assigned specific tasks on a periodic basis, with deadlines. If you’d like to know more before applying, I can direct you to the Commission’s contacts for clarification.
Serving on the panel enhances your visibility, sharpens your policy-relevant credentials, and helps fund your own work without forcing you to “sell your soul” or abandon independent projects.
Note that the documentation says they’ll aim to recruit 1-3 nationals from each EU country (plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein). As far as I understood, it does not require them to be living in their home country at the time of applying. Therefore, people from small European countries have especially good odds.
Note also that the gender balance goal would also increase the chance for any women applying.
Thanks for sharing! I’ve been sharing it with people working in AI Safety across Europe.
Do you know if anyone is doing a coordinated project to reach out to promising candidates from all EU countries and encourage them to apply? I’m worried that great candidates may not hear about it in time.
Hi, Lucie! Not to my knowledge. I have only seen this advertised by people like Risto Uuk or Jonas Schuett in their newsletters, and informally mentioned in events by people who currently work in the AI Office. But I am not aware of efforts to reach out to specific candidates.
The European Commission Seeks Experts for Its AI Scientific Panel
The European Commission is now accepting applications for the Scientific Panel of Independent Experts, focusing on general-purpose AI (GPAI). This panel will support the enforcement of the AI Act, and forms part of the institutional scaffolding designed to ensure that GPAI oversight is anchored in technical and scientific legitimacy.
The panel will advise the EU AI Office and national authorities on:
Systemic risks associated with GPAI models
Classification of GPAI models (including systemic-risk designation)
Evaluation methods (benchmarks, red-teaming, risk analysis)
Cross-border market surveillance
Enforcement tools and alerts for emerging risks
This is the institutional embodiment of what many in this community have been asking for: real technical expertise informing regulatory decision-making.
Who Should Apply?
The Commission is selecting 60 experts for a renewable 24-month term.
Members are appointed in a personal capacity and must be fully independent of any GPAI provider (i.e. no employment, consulting, or financial interest). Names and declarations of interest will be made public.
Relevant expertise must include at least one of the following:
Model evaluation and risk analysis: Red-teaming, capability forecasting, adversarial testing, human uplift studies, deployment evaluations
Risk methodologies: Risk taxonomies, modeling, safety cases
Mitigations and governance: Fine-tuning protocols, watermarking, guardrails, safety processes, incident response, internal audits
Misuse and systemic deployment risks: CBRN risk, manipulation of populations, discrimination, safety/security threats, societal harms
Cyber offense risks: Autonomous cyber operations, zero-day exploitation, social engineering, threat scaling
Provider-side security: Prevention of leakage, theft, circumvention of safety controls
Emergent model risks: Deception, self-replication, miscoordination, alignment drift, long-horizon planning
Compute and infrastructure: Compute auditing, resource thresholds, verification protocols
Eligibility:
PhD in a relevant field OR equivalent track record
Proven scientific impact in AI/GPAI research or systemic-risk analysis
Must demonstrate full independence from GPAI providers
Citizenship: At least 80% of panel members must be from EU/EEA countries. The other 20% can be from anywhere, so international researchers are eligible.
Deadline: 14 September 2025
Application link: EU Survey – GPAI Expert Panel
Contact: EU-AI-SCIENTIFIC-PANEL@ec.europa.
Why It’s Worth Considering
Even if you’re selected for the Scientific Panel, you are still allowed to carry out your own independent research as long as it is not for GPAI providers and you comply with confidentiality obligations.
This isn’t a full-time, 40-hour-per-week commitment. Members are assigned specific tasks on a periodic basis, with deadlines. If you’d like to know more before applying, I can direct you to the Commission’s contacts for clarification.
Serving on the panel enhances your visibility, sharpens your policy-relevant credentials, and helps fund your own work without forcing you to “sell your soul” or abandon independent projects.
Note that the documentation says they’ll aim to recruit 1-3 nationals from each EU country (plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein). As far as I understood, it does not require them to be living in their home country at the time of applying. Therefore, people from small European countries have especially good odds.
Note also that the gender balance goal would also increase the chance for any women applying.
Thanks for sharing! I’ve been sharing it with people working in AI Safety across Europe.
Do you know if anyone is doing a coordinated project to reach out to promising candidates from all EU countries and encourage them to apply? I’m worried that great candidates may not hear about it in time.
Hi, Lucie! Not to my knowledge. I have only seen this advertised by people like Risto Uuk or Jonas Schuett in their newsletters, and informally mentioned in events by people who currently work in the AI Office. But I am not aware of efforts to reach out to specific candidates.