Transformer is hiring
We're looking for a Managing Editor and a Reporter. Apply by April 30.
Transformer launched just under a year ago. In that short time, we’ve had more impact than I would have ever expected. We’ve built an audience of some of the most important people in AI and AI policy. We’ve broken exclusive stories. And we’ve been cited in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times, Politico, Axios, The Verge, Vox, TechCrunch, and many others.
Now we want to do even more.
And so we’re hiring for two full-time roles at Transformer: a Managing Editor and a Reporter.
Both roles will play a crucial role in helping grow our coverage of transformative AI systems into the world’s leading publication for AI decision-makers. We have incredibly ambitious plans, and we need an incredible team to execute them.
The most important details:
Managing Editor
You'll help run our growing newsroom, commission and edit a team of staff reporters and freelancers, produce your own original journalism, and help manage Transformer's growth.
Compensation: $100,000 - $145,000 (£77,000 - £112,000). For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation and more senior titles.
Location: Remote, with a preference for London, Washington DC, or San Francisco.
Start Date: July 2025
Reporting to: Shakeel Hashim (Editor, Transformer)
Deadline: Apply here by April 30 (midnight, Anywhere on Earth).
Reporter
You'll help write our weekly newsletter, contribute to breaking news analysis, and produce timely journalism on AI advances and policy developments.
Compensation: $65,000-$90,000 (£50,000-£70,000). For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation and more senior titles.
Location: Remote, with a strong preference for London.
Start Date: July 2025
Reporting to: Shakeel Hashim (Editor, Transformer)
Deadline: Apply here by April 30 (midnight, Anywhere on Earth).
You can see the full job descriptions for both roles here, and I’ve included them below too. What I’ll add to those is that I would love to hire someone who already reads and enjoys Transformer, understands our mission, and is excited about producing high-quality journalism that takes the possibility of transformative AI systems seriously.
We’re looking for slightly different people for each role — the Managing Editor position is perfect for someone with a few years of editorial experience, while the Reporter position is suitable for someone with no journalism experience at all. In both cases, though, we’re looking for ambitious and entrepreneurial people who are excited about building something new.
If this sounds like you, please apply. And to all the rest of you — I’m immensely grateful to you for reading and subscribing. Your support is why we can expand, and I’m very excited for what we’ll produce for you in the coming months and years.
Job Descriptions
Managing Editor, Transformer
Compensation: $100,000 - $145,000 (£77,000 - £112,000). For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation and more senior titles.
Location: Remote, with a preference for London, Washington DC, or San Francisco.
Start Date: July 2025
Reporting to: Shakeel Hashim (Editor, Transformer)
Deadline: Apply here by April 30 (midnight, Anywhere on Earth).
Transformer is seeking a Managing Editor to grow our coverage of transformative AI systems into the world’s leading publication for AI decision-makers.
Transformer, the resident publication of Tarbell, has quickly become essential reading for many policymakers, technologists, and journalists covering AI's rapid evolution and potential consequences. In less than a year, our work has been cited in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times, Politico, Axios, The Verge, Vox, TechCrunch, and many others.
Our subscribers include senior officials in the US and UK governments, leaders at every major AI company, and influential voices across academia, think tanks and media organizations.
Unlike most tech publications, we take seriously the possibility of transformative AI systems emerging in the near future. We believe the development of increasingly capable AI requires careful scrutiny, responsible governance, and clear-eyed analysis of both current capabilities and future trajectories.
Our coverage is focused in three buckets, with the possibility of adding a fourth:
The weekly newsletter: Transformer’s flagship product, a must-read summary of the week’s news combined with analysis on the most important stories.
Fast news analysis and opinion: Rapid response pieces contextualizing breaking news and highlighting overlooked angles (e.g. New OpenAI emails reveal a long history of mistrust, OpenAI's new model tried to avoid being shut down, The embarrassing failure of the Paris AI Summit)
Features and explainers: Accessible and educational deep dives into complex topics for our core audience, especially policymakers (e.g. AI coding tools are quietly reshaping software development, The way we evaluate AI model safety might be about to break, Synthetic data is more useful than you think)
External opinions: We’re interested in experimenting with an op-ed section, focused on bringing in diverse perspectives on transformative AI from outside the traditional AI ecosystem (e.g. experts on economics and international relations).
We are now looking for a managing editor who will play a central role in growing Transformer into an even bigger and better publication.
About Tarbell
Transformer is housed within and financially supported by Tarbell, a non-profit which supports journalism that helps society navigate the emergence of increasingly advanced AI. You can learn more about Tarbell and Tarbell’s donors here. While housed within Tarbell, Transformer maintains editorial independence.
About the role
In this role, you will:
Build and cultivate a roster of superb freelancers, commissioning them to write features and explainers that help educate and inform our readers on what really matters in AI.
Edit work from both freelancers and staff reporters, helping Transformer publish clear news, powerful analysis, and punchy opinion pieces five days a week.
Write your own must-read AI news and analysis pieces.
Build systems to scale our operations, including editorial calendars and publishing workflows, so that Transformer operates as smoothly as any major newsroom.
Work with the editor on marketing and growth initiatives, particularly our social media strategy, with the aim of growing our subscriber base to 40,000 within a year.
Play a key role in developing Transformer’s strategy and hiring plans going forward, with the potential to manage a team of reporters as we grow further.
As part of Tarbell, you’ll also spend 10% of your time working on other projects that support AI journalism elsewhere, such as mentoring early-career journalists on our fellowship, evaluating grants to other newsrooms, or developing newsroom training initiatives.
This position offers significant autonomy to shape both the role and Transformer's future direction. We are looking for someone who is entrepreneurial and enthusiastic about building a new publication — and also has an excellent instinct for what’s interesting and what matters in AI.
About you
You might be a particularly good fit for this role if:
You are a seasoned writer and editor with excellent news judgment. You understand how to take complicated or dry ideas and turn them into compelling, accessible stories. You enjoy the prospect of finding great freelance writers, and helping them produce their best work.
You are an organized and skilled project manager, able to juggle the editing process for many different pieces at once. You have unfailing attention to detail, particularly when it comes to copyediting, and a strong desire to improve systems and workflows.
You are entrepreneurial. You like the idea of doing lots of very different things with your work day, and you’re excited about thinking strategically to help grow a publication. You’re willing to take initiative without being asked, and thrive in relatively self-directed environments. You’re comfortable working at the fast pace of a daily newsroom.
You have a strong grasp of the AI landscape, particularly key policy debates (like recent state-level regulations) and technical concepts (such as advances in model reasoning or evidence for AI deception). While you can’t know everything, you wish you could — and you have the ability to learn new things quickly.
You understand that there is a possibility that we are rapidly approaching systems with capabilities that would qualify as artificial general intelligence, and recognize both the transformative potential and profound risks this presents.
Successful candidates will likely have 3+ years of experience as a journalist or editor.
If you meet some but not all of these criteria, we encourage you to apply. We expect many strong candidates will not meet all of the criteria listed.
Compensation, Benefits, and Location
This role will pay $100,000 - $145,000 (£77,000 - £112,000), depending on location and experience. For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation.
Our benefits include:
33 days of paid holiday in total (including national holidays).
$4,500 annual budget for equipment and office space.
$5,000 annual budget for personal development and productivity.
Standard pension (UK) or 401(k) (US), with 3% contribution from employer.
Competitive health benefits for staff based in the US.
A work environment that supports you to grow and challenges you to do your best work.
We are open to hiring candidates anywhere, with a preference for people in London, Washington DC, or San Francisco. We are able to sponsor visas in the UK, but not in the US. Work hours are flexible, but we expect you to be available for 3 hours of overlap between 10am and 6pm UK time daily.
We require all staff to spend 1 week every quarter on site, typically in London or San Francisco. Additionally, occasional travel may be required (approximately 1 additional week per quarter).
Tarbell is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. The emergence of increasingly advanced AI poses a risk to everyone. Grappling with this technology will require the participation of all of society and is undermined by discriminatory hiring practices which pit factions of humanity against one another.
We do not discriminate against qualified employees or applicants based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, sexual preference, marital status, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law or local ordinance. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law.
Application Process
Round 1: Apply here by April 30, 2025 (midnight Anywhere on Earth). In the initial application, we ask for a CV, cover letter, short answers to two questions, and a 500-word writing sample that could serve as one of the lead items in Transformer’s weekly briefing.
Round 2: Successful candidates will be invited to complete an interview with Shakeel Hashim, Transformer’s editor, and a 3-5 hour work task. We will compensate candidates $60 / hour for time spent on work tasks.
Round 3: Finalists will be invited to interview with Cillian Crosson, Tarbell’s executive director, and a second interview with Shakeel.
We hope to send out offers in June, with the successful candidate ideally starting in July.
Reporter, Transformer
Compensation: $65,000-$90,000 (£50,000-£70,000). For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation and more senior titles.
Location: Remote, with a strong preference for London.
Start Date: July 2025
Reporting to: Shakeel Hashim (Editor, Transformer)
Deadline: Apply here by April 30 (midnight, Anywhere on Earth).
Transformer is seeking a reporter to grow our coverage of transformative AI systems into the world’s leading publication for AI decision-makers.
Transformer, the resident publication of Tarbell, has quickly become essential reading for many policymakers, technologists, and journalists covering AI's rapid evolution and potential consequences. In less than a year, our work has been cited in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times, Politico, Axios, The Verge, Vox, TechCrunch, and many others.
Our subscribers include senior officials in the US and UK governments, leaders at every major AI company, and influential voices across think tanks and media organizations.
Unlike most tech publications, we take seriously the possibility of transformative AI systems emerging in the near future. We believe the development of increasingly capable AI requires careful scrutiny, responsible governance, and clear-eyed analysis of both current capabilities and future trajectories.
Our coverage is focused in three buckets, with the possibility of adding a fourth:
The weekly newsletter: Transformer’s flagship product, a must-read summary of the week’s news combined with analysis on the most important stories.
Fast news analysis and opinion: Rapid response pieces contextualizing breaking news and highlighting overlooked angles (e.g. New OpenAI emails reveal a long history of mistrust, OpenAI's new model tried to avoid being shut down, The embarrassing failure of the Paris AI Summit)
Features and explainers: Accessible and educational deep dives into complex topics for our core audience, especially policymakers (e.g. AI coding tools are quietly reshaping software development, The way we evaluate AI model safety might be about to break, Synthetic data is more useful than you think)
External opinions: We’re interested in experimenting with an op-ed section, focused on bringing in diverse perspectives on transformative AI from outside the traditional AI ecosystem (e.g. experts on economics and international relations).
We are now looking for a reporter to help augment our coverage as we grow into an even bigger and better publication.
About the role
In this role, you will:
Write and produce the majority of our weekly newsletter, synthesizing developments in AI with attention to their broader implications.
Contribute to rapid-response analysis of breaking news.
Produce timely explanatory pieces on AI advances and policy developments.
Develop your own areas of expertise within AI coverage.
Help set the future vision and direction for Transformer as we continue to expand.
As part of Tarbell, you’ll also spend 10% of your time working on other projects that support AI journalism elsewhere, such as mentoring early-career journalists on our fellowship, evaluating grants to other newsrooms, or developing newsroom training initiatives.
This position offers significant opportunity for growth and development. While we have outlined core responsibilities, we are open to shaping the role around exceptional candidates with unique experiences.
About Tarbell
Transformer is housed within and financially supported by Tarbell, a non-profit which supports journalism that helps society navigate the emergence of increasingly advanced AI. You can learn more about Tarbell and Tarbell’s donors here. While housed within Tarbell, Transformer maintains editorial independence.
About you
You might be a particularly good fit for this role if:
You write with exceptional clarity and concision.
You are plugged into the news, with the aim of reading (or at least skimming) every piece of AI news each week. You can identify the big stories of the week — and explain why they matter.
You can also take a step back and consider important big-picture trends and developments, and identify ways to inform our readers about them through features and explainers.
You are comfortable working and writing at the fast pace of a daily newsroom.
You are entrepreneurial. You’re excited about trying new things to help grow a publication and willing to take initiative without being asked.
You have a strong grasp of the AI landscape, particularly key policy debates (like recent state-level regulations) and technical concepts (such as advances in model reasoning or evidence for AI deception). While you can’t know everything, you wish you could — and you have the ability to learn new things quickly.
You understand that there is a possibility that we are rapidly approaching systems with capabilities that would qualify as artificial general intelligence, and you recognize both the transformative potential and profound risks this presents.
This position would be ideal for an early-career journalist, and will have significant support and mentorship from the editor and managing editor. However, we welcome applications from candidates at any career stage.
If you meet some but not all of these criteria, we encourage you to apply. We expect many strong candidates will not meet all of the criteria listed.
Compensation, Benefits, and Location
This role will pay $65,000-$90,000 (£50,000-£70,000), depending on location and experience. For highly experienced candidates, we are open to higher compensation.
Our benefits include:
33 days of paid holiday in total (including national holidays).
$2,000 annual budget for equipment and office space.
$2,000 annual budget for personal development and productivity.
Standard pension (UK) or 401(k) (US), with 3% contribution from employer.
Competitive health benefits for staff based in the US.
A work environment that supports you to grow and challenges you to do your best work.
We are open to hiring candidates anywhere, but have a strong preference for people in London for this role. We are able to sponsor visas in the UK, but not in the US. Work hours are flexible, but we expect you to be available for 5 hours of overlap between 10am and 6pm UK time daily.
We require all staff to spend 1 week every quarter on site, typically in London or San Francisco. Additionally, occasional travel may be required (approximately 1 additional week per quarter).
Tarbell is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. The emergence of increasingly advanced AI poses a risk to everyone. Grappling with this technology will require the participation of all of society and is undermined by discriminatory hiring practices which pit factions of humanity against one another.
We do not discriminate against qualified employees or applicants based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, sexual preference, marital status, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law or local ordinance. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law.
Application Process
Round 1: Apply here by April 30, 2025 (midnight Anywhere on Earth). In the initial application, we ask for a CV, cover letter, a short answer to one question, and a 500-word writing sample that could serve as one of the lead items in Transformer’s weekly briefing.
Round 2: Successful candidates will be invited to complete an interview with Shakeel, and a 3-5 hour work task. We will compensate candidates $40 / hour for time spent on work tasks.
Round 3: Finalists will be invited to interview with Cillian Crosson, Tarbell’s executive director, and a second interview with Shakeel.
We hope to send out offers in June, with the successful candidate ideally starting in July.
You have done an amazing work building such a high quality newsletter, very impressive! Congratulations.