About The Role
Postdoctoral Research Associate / Postdoctoral Research Fellow (Philosophy and Ethics)
Salary Details
The starting salary will be from £34,610 up to £39,906 for PDRA and from £43,482 for PDRF, depending on knowledge, skills and experience.
This full time, ERC funded post is available January 2027 to 31 December 2031. The successful applicant will conduct outstanding, international quality research on the ethics of AI and military decision-making. They will produce outstanding publications in the course of the research and establishing themselves as an expert in the field.
The post
The Faculty is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate or Fellow with expertise in with expertise in philosophy, ethics, political philosophy, moral philosophy, philosophy of technology, or a closely related field to work with Professor Anthony King (Principal Investigator) on his ERC Advanced Grant project GENERAL-AI: Artificial Intelligence and Military Decision-Making.
Applicants must have lived continuously in the UK for at least 5 years and be a national of a NATO member state in order to be eligible to obtain and maintain the required security clearance level for the role. Applications from candidates that do not meet the criteria will not be considered.
Appointment will be conditional upon the successful completion of security vetting.
The Project: GENERAL-AI: Artificial Intelligence and Military Decision-Making
GENERAL-AI is a five-year European Research Council Advanced Grant investigating how artificial intelligence is transforming military decision-making. The project challenges speculative accounts of AI taking over military command by examining what AI can actually do, how military commanders and their staffs use AI in practice, and the ethical implications of its use in war.
Focusing on AI-enabled high-intensity land warfare, the project combines the sociology of science and technology, ethnographic research, and philosophy and ethics. It investigates the development of military AI by leading technology companies, its use within NATO and European military headquarters, and the legal and ethical frameworks governing its application.
The project will provide a detailed empirical account of the relationship between AI and human decision-making, while developing new theoretical perspectives on how AI is changing cognition, organisations and military command. Its findings will contribute both to academic debates about AI and to contemporary European security and defence policy.
GENERAL AI consists of three work packages: Work Package 1 examines the technology itself exploring the development and character of AI Decision Support Systems through engagement with the relevant tech companies. Work Package 2 explores the process of decision-making inside military headquarters. Work Package 3 will examine the ethics of military decision making with AI. This post refers to Work Package 3.
The Role:
The successful candidate will undertake research for Work Package 3 (WP3), AI Ethics, investigating the ethical and legal implications of the use of artificial intelligence in military operations.
The research addresses a central question: to what extent does AI threaten the ethics of military decision-making? Contemporary debates frequently frame this issue in terms of whether humans remain "in", "on" or "off" the decision-making loop. GENERAL-AI develops an alternative approach, examining military decisions as decisions made by human groups in which AI systems, military personnel and civilian technical experts may increasingly be involved.
The postholder will investigate the changing distribution of agency, responsibility and ethical judgement within these emerging human-AI decision environments.
Key responsibilities
The successful candidate will:
- undertake philosophical and ethical research into the use of AI in military decision-making;
- critically analyse contemporary philosophical and ethical debates concerning AI, autonomy, agency, responsibility and military decision-making;
- examine critically the concept of the human "decision loop" and alternative approaches to understanding human-AI decision-making;
- investigate whether, and in what sense, AI systems can be regarded as moral or decision-making agents;
- analyse the ethical responsibilities of military commanders and other human actors who use AI in potentially lethal operations;
- investigate the changing ethical relationships between military personnel and civilian technology specialists involved in the development, operation and application of military AI;
- conduct documentary research into national, European and NATO policies and legislation concerning the responsible use of AI in defence;
- analyse the application of the Laws of Armed Conflict and associated ethical norms to AI-enabled military operations;
- conduct interviews with policymakers, legislators, military professionals, technology executives and AI programmers;
- examine how ethical principles are understood and applied in practice by military and technological practitioners;
- investigate how ethical reasoning influences decisions concerning the deployment and use of AI in potentially lethal military operations;
- contribute to the project's analysis of the human decision team, including questions of collective agency, responsibility, accountability and moral judgement;
- contribute to high-quality academic publications and international conference presentations;
- work collaboratively with the Principal Investigator and the wider GENERAL-AI research team while developing an independent programme of philosophical and ethical research.
WP3 will combine philosophical analysis, ethical theory, legal and policy analysis, and empirical qualitative research. The successful candidate will therefore have the opportunity to work across the boundary between normative philosophy and empirical research.
The research will examine European, NATO and national frameworks for the responsible use of AI, alongside the Laws of Armed Conflict. It will also investigate how these formal principles are interpreted and applied by the people actually developing and using military AI.
The empirical research will involve interviews with organisations and practitioners across the policy, military and technology sectors. These include relevant EU and NATO bodies, national defence organisations, military headquarters and technology companies involved in the development and deployment of AI.
A particular focus will be the emergence of new human teams within military decision-making, in which civilian technical specialists may work alongside commanders and military staff. The research will ask how responsibility and accountability should be understood when technological experts, military professionals and AI systems are collectively involved in decisions with potentially lethal consequences. The project therefore moves beyond the simple question of whether a human is technically "in the loop" to examine who actually makes decisions, who exercises judgement, and who bears moral responsibility.
Research environment
The successful candidate will be based at the University of Exeter’s Strategy and Security Institute will be integrated into the Defence Data Research Centre, providing access to an interdisciplinary research environment spanning data science, computer science, social science and cyber security. The project also has an international academic and practitioner network spanning the UK, Europe and the United States.
The postdoctoral researcher will also work closely with the wider GENERAL-AI team. The three academic Work Packages are independent but interconnected, allowing the postholder's research on the development of AI technology to inform the project's parallel research into military decision-making and ethics.
About you
The successful applicant will be able to present information on research progress and outcomes, communicate complex information, orally, in writing and electronically and prepare proposals and applications to external bodies.
For PDRA applicants, you will possess a relevant PhD (or nearing completion). For PDRF applicants, you will possess a relevant PhD. Applicants will be able to plan, execute and conduct international level research and publish findings in peer reviewed journals and books.
Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role.
Further information
For further information please contact Professor Anthony King, e-mail a.c.king@exeter.ac.uk or telephone (01392) 723259.
Interviews are expected to take place Late Nov/Early Dec
About Us
Transform Your Career and Help Shape a Greener, Healthier, and Fairer Future
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What we can offer you:
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