The US government may be the single most important actor for shaping how AI develops. If you want to improve the trajectory of AI and reduce catastrophic risks, you could have an outsized impact by working on US policy. But the US policy ecosystem is huge and confusing. And policy shaping AI is made by specific people in specific places — so where you work matters enormously. Narrated by AI. --- Outline: (01:09) Part 1: How to find the most impactful places to work on AI policy (01:31) Prioritise building career capital (03:37) Work backwards from the most important issues (05:32) Find levers of influence (07:07) Prepare for 'policy windows' (10:21) Consider personal fit (11:44) Part 2: Our best guess at the most impactful places (right now) (11:58) 1. Executive Office of the President (18:43) 2. Federal departments and agencies (24:25) 3. Congress (32:28) 4. State governments (37:47) 5. Think tanks and advocacy organisations (41:04) Conclusion (41:49) Want one-on-one advice on pursuing this path? (42:10) Learn more about how and why to pursue a career in US AI policy (42:16) Top recommendations (43:11) Further reading The original text contained 45 footnotes which were omitted from this narration. --- First published: November 17th, 2025 Source: https://80000hours.org/articles/the-us-ai-policy-landscape-where-to-have-the-biggest-impact --- Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO . --- Images from the article: Apple Podcasts and Spotify do not show images in the episode description. Try Pocket Casts , or another podcast app.