The SAIGE Incubator
Ready to Shape the Future of Safe AI?
Applications open March 2026 for the Spring 2026 Cohort.
Join Germany's national community of emerging AI safety researchers. Gain real research experience, build foundational knowledge, and connect with mentors and peers across the country.
Why Germany (& the world) needs your talent
AI is improving at an unprecedented pace and with it grows the potential for catastrophic risk. Yet, as of date, only a tiny amount of AI researchers work full-time on making AI safe.
Therefore, we need you: if you have any background in computer science, maths, law, political science, psychology, economics or just a general interest in AI and its impact on the world, you are in a perfect position to do impactful work and change our future to the better.
The SAIGE Incubator equips you with the research skills, foundational AI safety and governance knowledge and the community needed to make that happen.
You will research with one of our selected mentors on their project, join weekly interactive foundations sessions and benefit from a close and supportive community. We provide you with personal support, career advice and future opportunities to ensure that this incubator is only the start of your path to impactful AI safety or governance work.
What we offer you
*Mentor profiles for the Spring 2026 cohort will be announced when applications open in March.
Here are the details for the above three pillars that we offer:
Before diving into research, all fellows complete an intensive two-week intro course based on BlueDot's AGI Strategy curriculum. You'll:
- Attend 2 sessions per week in an intensive, focused format (April 6-19)
- Develop your understanding of AI progress, risks, and solutions
- Build foundational knowledge alongside your future research cohort
- The intro course is open to all accepted applicants, even those not continuing to the research track
Work around 8 hours per week on a research project with an experienced mentor from a leading German institution. You'll:
- Collaborate on an impactful AI safety or governance project
- Meet weekly with your mentor (mentors commit ~1 hour/week)
- Develop research skills that are prerequisites for advanced fellowships like MATS, ERA, SPAR, and LASR
- Present your work at midway and final research presentations
- Potentially continue toward publication or thesis work
- Option to extend your research for an additional 3 months
Our Incubator is not just another seminar. It is a place for you to grow and get the support you need to pursue an impactful career in AI safety or governance. To make this journey as frictionless as possible, we offer you:
- Kick-off event to meet your cohort and mentors
- Bi-weekly events featuring exclusive talks and Q&As with invited guests from inside and outside Germany
- Networking events to build connections with fellow researchers
- Access to the SAIGE Slack community
- Career guidance and next-step planning
- Connect with existing local AI safety groups in your city
- Complete program surveys to receive your certificate of completion
Timeline for the Spring 2026 Cohort
Applications open: March 2nd, 2026
Application deadline: March 22nd, 2026
Selection period: March 23rd - April 5th (3 weeks)
Intro course (AGI Strategy): April 6-19th, 2026 (intensive, 2 sessions/week)
Research projects begin: April 20th, 2026
Core incubator program ends: July 19th, 2026 (with optional extension of up to 3 additional months)