Posted on behalf of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government
Commitment: To be mutually agreed; short- and long-term options possible during 2025-26 academic year based on applicant’s interests and research needs.
Outcomes: Potential co-authorship on publications, hands-on experience with cutting-edge policy research, and contribution to tools that could influence AI policy debates.
Background: The unproductive standoff between innovation-first vs regulation-first advocates has placed AI policy in a rut. This research, led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow M. Alejandra Parra-Orlandoni, aims to break through the impasse by reframing how we understand AI’s role in society—not as another technology to be regulated, but as an emerging societal actor that requires constitutional-level thinking about power distribution. This project consists of three interconnected parts:
- Part 1: Four Societal Actors Model – Develops theoretical frameworks positioning AI as a fourth societal actor alongside the state, enterprises, and of course people. Includes power dynamics models, policy efficacy evaluation criteria, and AI agency taxonomy, as well as comparative analysis showing how this new approach addresses gaps left by current risk-based regulatory frameworks.
- Part 2: Policy Case Studies – Analyzes historical power imbalances between societal actors to inform policy interventions and design principles for AI governance not currently in play. Includes creating a comprehensive policy interventions toolkit.
- Part 3: Gamified Policy Lab – Builds an interactive simulation for testing AI policy interventions using research results from Parts 1 & 2.
Available Positions
Support for Part 1: Foresight, comparative analysis, applied theory
You have experience with one or more of the following:
- Futures/foresight work (developing scenarios 3-5 years in the future)
- Application of risk-based AI governance regimes (eg, EU AI Act, NIST)
- Applying political philosophy (eg, Hobbes, Weber, Habermas) to contemporary society
- Taxonomy development
- Comparative policy analysis
- Valued expertise: education, financial systems, government use of technology, cross-border infrastructure systems, history of labor policy, sociology of family, understanding of emerging AI capabilities, excellent writing skills
Sample project deliverables:
- Research and validate theoretical foundations linking political philosophy to Four Societal Actors Model, resulting power dynamics, and AI policy efficacy benchmarks
- Develop forward-looking scenarios featuring AI systems of the future
- Conduct comparative analysis of current AI governance frameworks (EU AI Act, NIST, etc.) vs Four Societal Actors Model and identify gaps
- Develop/refine an AI Agency Taxonomy
Support for Part 2: Policy case studies & analysis, policy interventions library
You have experience with one or more of the following:
- Developing and analyzing policy case studies
- Designing policy interventions, especially checks and balances mechanisms, to achieve policy goals
- Valued expertise: corporate governance, constitutional law, regulatory design, institutional analysis, excellent writing skills
- Bonus: Domain expertise in the 2008 financial crisis U.S. regulatory environment, post-9/11 surveillance laws in the U.S., or labor movements during the Progressive Era in the U.S.
Sample project deliverables:
- Conduct comprehensive research on the three main case studies (2008 financial crisis, War on Terror surveillance, Fordism & labor laws)
- Analyze effectiveness of policy interventions and identify success factors / failure modes
- Extract policy intervention tools and strategies from case studies and “translate” them to apply to AI
- Develop an AI policy interventions toolkit; map against Four Societal Actors power dynamics
Support for Part 3: Policy game design, game development
*Note: This work likely will not kick off until 2026, but please reach out to express early interest.
You have experience with one or more of the following:
- Game design – Creating engaging, educational experiences that simulate complex systems
- Policy design – Understanding how policy interventions create cascading effects across systems
- Game development – Technical and non-technical aspects of building interactive simulations
- Technical skills valued: Game engines, simulation software, user experience design, data visualization, educational technology
- Non-technical skills valued: Serious games design, policy simulation experience, educational design, systems thinking
How to Apply: Please submit the following materials to maparraorlandoni@hks.harvard.edu:
- Resume/CV highlighting relevant experience and skills
- Research interest statement (max. 500 words) addressing:
- Which part(s) of the three-part research structure most excites you and why
- Relevant experience or perspectives you would bring to the team
- Optional writing/work sample showcasing relevant analytical, research, or creative work