Senior Director, AI Studio

As the founding leader of the AI Studio, you will:

• Develop and drive the Studio's long-term strategy, growth trajectory, and work portfolio.
• Build a sustainable pipeline of philanthropy- and partner-supported initiatives in collaboration with Urban's leadership and development teams.
• Identify where AI can meaningfully improve systems, services, and outcomes, and translate those opportunities into ambitious, actionable engagements.
• Position Urban as a national thought leader at the intersection of AI, public policy, and social impact.
• Cultivate partnerships with governments, philanthropies, nonprofits, technology companies, researchers, and civic innovators.
• Convene diverse stakeholders, including technologists, social scientists, practitioners, and community leaders, to develop solutions grounded in real-world needs.
• Collaborate across Urban by leading multidisciplinary teams delivering responsible, user-centered, and evidence-driven AI initiatives.
• Advance new approaches for evaluating AI systems and measuring their effects on people, organizations, and communities.
• Explore opportunities to develop public goods, reusable tools, and shared infrastructure that can amplify impact beyond any single project.
• Build organizational capabilities that help Urban and its partners navigate rapid technological change.

What Makes This Role Unique:

The AI Studio's differentiator is not technology alone. Urban combines deep policy expertise, rigorous research methods, trusted relationships, and technical capabilities in ways few organizations can match. The Senior Director will have the opportunity to:

• Shape how governments and mission-driven organizations adopt AI.
• Work in collaboration with nationally recognized policy experts and researchers.
• Build new partnerships across philanthropy, technology, and the public sector.
• Create evidence about what works and what does not in applied AI.
• Help ensure AI delivers measurable public benefit, especially for communities often left behind by technological change.
• Establish a start-up studio within an organization that has over 50 years of impact that can influence the future of responsible AI implementation nationwide.

The Urban Institute AI Studio is a new center within Urban's Technology and Data Science Department. The Senior Director reports to the Vice President of Technology and Data Science & Chief Information Officer and will draw on AI and data science experts within the department and subject-matter experts and practitioners across Urban's policy divisions.

The Ideal Candidate:

The strongest candidates will bring a combination of entrepreneurial leadership, technological fluency, strategic vision, and a commitment to public impact. They will have demonstrated success building initiatives, securing resources, cultivating funder and public sector partnerships, and translating ambitious ideas into tangible results. Candidates may come from technology, philanthropy, government, consulting, research, or mission-driven organizations, but they will share a belief that AI's greatest value lies not in the technology itself, but in its ability to solve meaningful problems and improve people's lives.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field required. Advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressively responsible leadership experience, with a track record of building, scaling, or leading high-impact programs, initiatives, or business units.
• An entrepreneurial mindset coupled with sound judgment and a bias towards action.
• Demonstrated experience at the intersection of strategy, technology, public policy, research, philanthropy, or social impact.
• Demonstrated ability to cultivate and leverage a broad network of AI, technology, research, and policy leaders to accelerate innovation, attract resources, and expand organizational impact.
• Proven success securing funding, developing strategic partnerships and engaging leaders across sectors.
• Strong understanding of emerging technologies and their potential applications in addressing public and social challenges.
• Exceptional communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate across teams and stakeholder groups.
• Experience leading diverse teams of experts and fostering a culture of innovation, learning, and execution.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate ambiguity, identify opportunities, and convert vision into action and tangible outcomes.
• Deep commitment to evidence and the responsible use of technology in service of the public good.