Postdoctoral Research Associate

Full-time: 35 hours per week

Fixed-term: 6 months (until 4^th February 2026)

The Opportunity:

The post-holder will be part of an exciting new interdisciplinary research project funded by the AI Security Institute (AISI) called ‘WearAI: Examining the Societal Vulnerabilities Exposed by AI Embedded in Context-Aware Smart Wearables’. The AI Security Institute is a research organisation within the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, with a mission to equip governments with a scientific understanding of the risks posed by advanced AI. The WearAI project is investigating the societal vulnerabilities (including to security and privacy) that may be introduced when AI is used to process data from wearable devices such as ‘smart glasses’.

The project involves academics from Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, with expertise across computer science, wearable computing, AI and criminology. Our programme of research utilises both experimental and literature-based approaches to explore the implications of connecting wearable computing devices such as smart glasses to artificial intelligence large language models. The exact contribution of the post-holder will depend on their background and expertise but could include undertaking qualitative or quantitative analysis of datasets on wearable camera use; analysing relevant law and policy applicable to wearable cameras and mobile AI; or developing new theoretical approaches to help understand our empirical data.

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher with a background in criminology, science and technology studies (STS), technology law, or other relevant social scientific discipline, who will bring their expertise to the project. Key responsibilities in the role include contributing domain expertise, contributing to project development and analysis of findings, publishing and disseminating high quality research outputs, and being a core member of the interdisciplinary team. This is a non-technical post, and the post-holder is not expected to have experience in training AI models. 

The post-holder line manager is Dr Richard Jones, School of Law, University of Edinburgh, where you will be based. The post-holder will work closely with other investigators on the project, including Dr Mark McGill and Dr Tanaya Guha at the University of Glasgow.

This post is full-time (35 hours per week); however, we are open to considering flexible working patterns.  We are also open to considering requests for hybrid working (on a non-contractual basis) that combines a mix of remote and regular on-campus working.  

Your skills and attributes for success: 

• PhD (or near completion) in criminology, STS, technology law or cognate discipline with knowledge of regulatory and socio-technical impacts of emerging smart technologies.
• Good understanding of social or legal implications of technology use, e.g. from prior experience of working on a technology-related project (such as a funded project, a publication, or doctoral research)
• Key skills appropriate to your domain (e.g. theoretical expertise, empirical data collection and analysis, or legal analysis).
• A growing track record in publishing and disseminating research outcomes.
• Initiative and independence in managing research workload, whilst being a core member of a highly collaborative interdisciplinary team.

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