The UK’s AI Security Institute has launched “The Alignment Project,” a £15 million international coalition focused on ensuring AI systems behave predictably and as designed. This initiative was announced on July 30, 2025, and represents a significant coordinated effort to address what many consider one of the most pressing challenges in AI development.
The coalition brings together a diverse group of international partners:
Government Partners:
- UK AI Security Institute (lead)
- Canadian AI Safety Institute
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR)
- UK Research and Innovation
- Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA)
Industry Partners:
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)
- Anthropic
- Schmidt Sciences
Other Organizations:
- Halcyon Futures
- Safe AI Fund
The project focuses on AI alignment research – “making sure AI systems continue to follow our goals as the technology becomes more capable and finding techniques to ensure AI systems remain transparent and responsive to human oversight”. This addresses the critical challenge of ensuring advanced AI systems remain under human control and act in humanity’s best interests.
The £15 million project offers three distinct levels of support:
- Grant Funding: Up to £1 million for researchers across disciplines from computer sciences to cognitive science
- Compute Access: Up to £5 million in dedicated cloud computing credits from AWS for technical experiments
- Venture Capital: Investment from private funders to accelerate commercial alignment solutions
The project is guided by a world-class advisory board including Turing Award winners Shafi Goldwasser and Yoshua Bengio, along with other distinguished researchers such as Zico Kolter from Carnegie Mellon University and Andrea Lincoln from Boston University.
Strategic Importance
According to UK Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, “Advanced AI systems are already exceeding human performance in some areas, so it’s crucial we’re driving forward research to ensure this transformative technology is behaving in our interests”.
The timing is particularly significant as the 2025 International AI Safety Report highlighted how advanced models are rapidly improving their capabilities and demonstrating PhD-levels of knowledge in some areas.
Industry Perspective
Jack Clark, Co-Founder and Head of Policy at Anthropic, emphasized the urgency: “As AI systems become increasingly intelligent, it is urgent that we improve our understanding of how they work”.
Global Collaboration
The project exemplifies international cooperation in AI safety, with Canadian Minister Evan Solomon noting that “we are at a hinge moment in the story of AI, where our choices today will shape Canada’s economic future and influence the global trajectory of this technology”.
This coalition represents a significant step forward in addressing AI alignment challenges through coordinated international research, substantial funding, and collaboration between government, industry, and academic institutions.
