JOB SUMMARY

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is seeking an exceptional leader to become the Director of the Incubator for AI (i.AI), a flagship team within the Government Digital Service (GDS). This is a unique opportunity to lead a high-performing, mission-driven team that is building AI tools to transform public services and improve lives across the UK.
As Director, you will act as the CEO of i.AI, responsible for setting strategic direction, overseeing delivery, and ensuring the team thrives within government. You will report to the Director General for Digital Centre Design and play a key role in shaping the future of AI in the public sector.
The Incubator for AI is a dynamic, agile technical delivery team that prototypes and scales AI solutions for use across government. Since its inception, i.AI has delivered 11 products in Alpha, Beta or Scaling, written over 11 million lines of code, and supported thousands of citizen interactions monthly through tools like Caddy.
Our mission is to harness the opportunity of AI to improve lives, drive growth and deliver better public services. We work openly, collaboratively and with a strong sense of public purpose.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

We are looking for a strategic, empowering and technically credible leader who can:

• Deliver complex transformation through new technologies in large-scale environments.
• Lead diverse, high-performing teams through change.
• Communicate technical concepts clearly to a wide range of audiences.
• Build coalitions and influence across government and industry.
• Demonstrate deep knowledge of AI technologies and their practical applications.
• Develop and implement governance frameworks that prioritise fairness, accountability and transparency.

Experience in leading AI start-ups, incubators or venture-style teams is desirable but not essential.

WHILE WE VALUE THE USE OF AI TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE OUR DAILY WORK, WE ALSO VALUE THE PERSONAL TOUCH AND URGE APPLICANTS TO WRITE COVER LETTERS WITHOUT THE USE OF AI TO EMPHASISE THEIR OWN UNIQUE EXPERIENCES.

In the event we receive a high volume of applications, we will conduct the initial sift against the lead criteria
In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles to evaluate your skills and ability. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, increases performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. We’ll be assessing your technical abilities, skills, experience and behaviours that are relevant to this role.

For this role we’ll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:

• working together
• changing and improving
• making effective decisions
• leadership
• developing self and others
• seeing the bigger picture
• communicating and influencing
• managing a quality service
• delivering at pace

NATIONALITY REQUIREMENTS

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the strategic direction and delivery of i.AI’s portfolio, ensuring alignment with ministerial priorities and emerging technologies.
• Inspire and manage a multidisciplinary team of around 80 staff, including AI engineers, product managers and service designers.
• Champion innovation methods and best practices in rapid prototyping and technical delivery.
• Represent i.AI at senior levels across government, including with Ministers and senior officials.
• Build partnerships with UK AI companies, academia and the wider public sector to scale impact.
• Ensure responsible and ethical AI development, embedding fairness, transparency and public trust in all products.

The standard selection process for roles at GDS consists of:

• a simple application screening process - We only ask for a CV and cover letter of up to 750 words. Important tip - please ensure that your cover letter includes how you meet the skills and experience listed in the “person specification” section abov

For this role we’ll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:

• working together
• changing and improving
• making effective decisions
• leadership
• developing self and others
• seeing the bigger picture
• communicating and influencing
• managing a quality service
• delivering at pac