Program pilot · fall cohort forming
AI × Biosecurity
A cross-university pilot program on how frontier AI is changing biological risk, and how to defend against next-generation pandemics. Weekly sessions, a speaker series, and one shared research project that every participating campus owns a piece of.
01 Why
Why this program
Biosecurity is one of the clearest places where advanced AI raises the stakes, and one of the most neglected.
Frontier models are increasingly capable in the life sciences, and the safeguards, evaluations, and policy needed to manage that are still being invented. As capability grows, so does the magnitude of risk. With AI now able to create de novo virsues and showing the abilitiy to carry out autonomous attacks, defenses like DNA synthesis screening and metagenomic surveillance matter more now than they ever have. The world is NOT ready for a "Mythos" moment in virology or molecular biology.
So RAIA is building an original virtual program on the intersection: how AI changes biological risk, how labs and governments are responding, and where students can contribute. The curriculum draws on existing courses and is tailored to university students of any background. And unlike a course you take alone, the work is shared: every participating campus owns a piece of one larger research project.
The pilot is being planned for the fall semester, with a likely extension into spring if the demand is there. Details, speakers, and dates are still coming together, and the interest form is how you shape them.
02 The network
One project, many campuses
This isn't a webinar series. Each university group owns a scoped piece of one macro-project, and every campus that joins makes the network worth more to all the others: more cohorts to argue with, more speakers to share, more hands on the project. Every contributor is an author on what ships or is published. The goal is to build network effects for AI and biosecurity organizations
own a piece
Real stake in real research
Your group takes a defined slice of the macro-project, sized to your members, and contributors are included as authors on the output.
start a hub
No biosecurity group? Start one.
Most campuses don't have one yet. That's the point: onboarding members into a running project is how a face-to-face community forms around real work.
plug in
Already organized? Connect.
If your campus has a biosecurity or AI safety group, we'll connect you with the other hubs in the network: shared speakers, shared curriculum, shared output. Every new hub makes the mesh stronger.
Organizing at another university?
Bring your AI safety group, your bio club, or three curious friends. The interest form takes ~15 minutes, and we may be able to help with costs like food, fees, and compute. Prefer email? riceaialignment@gmail.com
03 Structure
How a week runs
Two identical one-hour sessions run every week, so every timezone can make one. Dedicated project meetings run in between.
01 · weekly
Readings & presentations
Weekly topic presentations with curated readings, built so students from any major can reach the frontier fast.
02 · weekly
Cross-campus cohorts
Discussion sessions mix universities, so you argue the readings with students from other schools, timezones, and majors. The network effect is the point.
03 · recurring
Speaker series & careers
Invited researchers and practitioners across AI safety and biosecurity, plus career guidance to turn a semester of interest into a path.
04 · ongoing
The macro-project
Dedicated planning meetings to scope, build, and ship your group's piece of the shared project, with authorship for everyone who contributes.
04 Directions
Project directions on the table
The macro-project gets scoped with the cohort. These are the directions we're weighing. Read into them, then bring your own.
New to the space? Start with our recommended reading list: the papers and reports behind each direction.
Help build the network
One curious student or a whole club: either way, we want to hear from you. Dates, speakers, and the syllabus land on the mailing list and Discord first.
