Currently 4 active ai and ai safety grants, fellowships and residencies open to applicants in Asia. Hand-curated and updated weekly. Almost every entry is funded; a few notable unpaid open calls and festival submissions are included as clearly flagged exceptions. Browse the list below, or use the interactive desk for filtering and shortlisting.
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Human Rights Watch is hiring an AI Strategy and Solutions Lead into its Operations Department to build the foundation for responsible AI adoption across the organisation. The role deliberately sits between strategy and execution: assessing organisational readiness, mapping partnerships and governance, and also prototyping and shipping working systems. THE WORK, in four strands. (1) STRATEGY AND READINESS: with the CIO and the Information Security and Technology (IST) leadership team, build an AI strategy covering data foundation requirements, infrastructure gaps and organisational readiness; assess current state and shape a roadmap balancing quick wins against long-term capacity; research what peer nonprofit, humanitarian and human rights organisations are doing and find collaboration openings. (2) FLAGSHIP SOLUTIONS: work with departments to find high-impact use cases, translate business needs into technical approaches, build and deploy AI/ML solutions with measurable value (time saved, efficiency, better outcomes), using the Microsoft AI ecosystem (Copilot Studio, Azure AI, Power Platform) among other tools, and oversee consultants and vendors to extend delivery capacity. (3) ADOPTION AND CAPACITY: balance onboarding staff onto AI tools against building custom solutions where they amplify the organisation's strengths; write training material pitched at different work areas and skill levels covering prompting and responsible use; support working groups and communities of practice; produce playbooks and guides for non-technical staff. (4) GOVERNANCE: partner with IST leadership on risk assessment frameworks, align solutions with security, infrastructure and architecture requirements, contribute to AI policy development and its operationalisation, set standards for evaluating proofs of concept and MVPs, and engage business units so outcomes are co-owned; all of it balanced against data quality, security and resource constraints and HRW's mission as a human rights organisation. WHO THEY WANT: a bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience in computer science, data science, information systems, mathematics, AI/ML implementation or a related technical field; a minimum of seven years' relevant experience including two to three years on AI and two to three years implementing AI/ML in production; experience contributing to technology strategy and assessing organisational readiness for new technology; strong Python and ML library/framework skills; hands-on predictive modelling, data science and statistical analysis; experience with low-code/no-code AI platforms such as Copilot Studio or Power Platform; a track record of scoping and delivering under resource constraints; a grasp of both generative AI and traditional ML; and the ability to explain technical concepts plainly to mixed audiences, engage stakeholders and lead technology adoption as an internal partner to business teams. PREFERRED: nonprofit, humanitarian or human rights experience; data privacy, security and ethical AI knowledge; familiarity with responsible AI frameworks and governance models; vendor and consultant management; and a background in politically sensitive or high-risk environments. APPLY: through the HRW job portal with a cover letter and CV, preferably as PDFs, by 30 August 2026. Only complete applications are reviewed and only shortlisted candidates are contacted; no calls or email enquiries. HRW states that it does not discriminate on the basis of disability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or criminal record.
Touch Some Grass is an open-call poster exhibition responding to the growing presence of AI-generated imagery and its impact on creative labour, authorship and visual culture. At a time when images can be produced instantly and consumed just as quickly, the exhibition reclaims the poster as a space for ideas, intention and public conversation, inviting artists to make work that questions, challenges or reflects on this changing landscape. As the organisers put it, the question is no longer whether machines can make images, they can; the question is what kind of world we build when speed matters more than thought. NOTE: this call offers exhibition and visibility only, with no artist fee or stipend. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES: artwork size A3 (297 x 420 mm), portrait orientation, 300 DPI, CMYK recommended, print-quality PDF preferred, maximum file size 1 GB, one submission per artist. CAP: participation is limited to 60 artists and the submission form closes automatically once all slots are filled, so the effective deadline may fall well before 31 August 2026 (10 of 60 slots were taken at the time of listing). Inato Gallery is an artist-run space in Iligan City, Philippines, which began as a solo street exhibition by KaraTula and now runs concept-driven solo and group shows, open mics, talks and workshops built on openness, participation and the belief that art should exist where people already are.
SAFL, described as South Asia's first research and capacity-building lab for navigating powerful AI, is hiring more than one Research Fellow. Its foundational work is supported by Schmidt Sciences and the Future of Life Institute among others. THE ROLE: original research carried from an open question to a finished result. The lab wants people who can take a question nobody has answered, choose a method that fits it, do the work and write up a result others can check, working closely with the research leads and with room to shape their own agenda and the wider one. RESEARCH AREAS, two broad tracks; you need to be deep in one and able to speak to the others. Managing AI Risks: technical AI governance and policy (the frameworks advanced AI needs and the technical artifacts they depend on, covering evaluation standards, incident reporting, logging and provenance, attribution methods, liability and accountability, and turning technical evidence into standards Indian and international bodies can adopt), and AI security and alignment research (the safety and security of AI systems themselves, including AI and cybersecurity and the security of systems AI is deployed on top of, such as India's digital public infrastructure). Societal and Economic Impacts: the economic impacts of AI on labour, growth and public finances with attention to India and other developing economies, plus psycho-social effects. BAR: at least 3 years of hands-on research experience, described as the lab's most senior research bar, though exceptional people without that experience are encouraged to apply and junior/internship versions exist. HONEST WARNING FROM THE POSTING: 'The work is demanding, and we mean that plainly.' Priorities change as the field changes; output goes to funders, government bodies and outside researchers. Not a role with fixed scope or settled routine. RELATED OPENING: SAFL is also hiring a Scientific Communicator, plus an Organisation Operations Specialist, a Special Projects Fellow and a general expression of interest. DEADLINE: none published; rolling.
A science communication and information-design role at SAFL, South Asia's first research and capacity-building lab for navigating powerful AI, whose foundational work is supported by Schmidt Sciences and the Future of Life Institute among others. THE ROLE: turn the lab's research into clear writing and visuals for funders, partners, policymakers and the public. You read technical and policy work on AI and explain it in plain language without losing the substance. NOTE THAT A LARGE PART OF THIS ROLE IS VISUAL: building slide decks and visual maps that show what the lab works on and how the parts fit together, used for fundraising and partner updates. You work closely with the research and leadership team. WHAT THEY WANT: ideally 2 to 5 years of relevant experience, though the posting says a strong body of work can stand in for years. You do not need to be a known voice in the field; you do need to write clearly, learn their research quickly and care about getting it right. WHAT YOU WOULD BE EXPLAINING: technical AI governance and policy (evaluation standards, incident reporting, logging and provenance, attribution, liability), AI security and alignment research including the security of India's digital public infrastructure, and the societal and economic impacts of AI on labour, growth and public finances in India and other developing economies. HONEST WARNING FROM THE POSTING: 'The work is demanding, and we mean that plainly.' You will often be the first person to put new research into words a non-expert can follow, priorities shift as the field shifts, and the work goes straight to funders, government partners and the public. Not a role with fixed scope or settled routine. DEADLINE: none published; rolling.