On 23 September 2021, Tim Berners-Lee writes about the importance of protecting people from states as part of the action plan for Secure Our Digital Future.

Joined by Madeleine Albright, Tim Berners-Lee, Brad Smith and other leader thinkers, Secure our Digital Future aims to create an international framework for Peace, Security And Cooperation in the Cyber World.

In his latest post, Tim emphasises the importance of preserving an open, global internet so that we can spark innovation and help us collectively tackle the challenges we face, and for this, we need to build globally accepted norms to shape the digital future we want.

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We are excited to announce a 2-year (with the possibility of an extension for 1 more year) Research Associate position at the University of Oxford, under the supervision of Professors Sir Nigel Shadbolt and Sir Tim Berners-Lee. The Research Associate will be part of the newly funded multi-million-pound research project – Ethical Web and Data Architectures in the Age of AI - supported by the Oxford Martin School. The successful candidate will be located in the Department of Computer Science and be a member of the Human Centred Computing Theme.

The post holder will be responsible for elements of the design, development and deployment of new forms of technical infrastructure and cutting-edge privacy-preserving methods consistent with the aim of the EWADA project. They will work collaboratively with the PIs and other members of the research team on the project, as well as independently leading and developing their own body of research in line with the project’s aims. The post holder will be a member of the Human Centred Computing theme within the Department of Computer Science. The research group carries out world leading research relating to Human Computer Interaction, Human Centred AI, responsible innovation, and ethical data infrastructures. More information on Human Centred Computing can be found here.

The successful candidate will also be part of the EWADA research programme, which brings together researchers from Oxford’s Department of Computer Science, Faculties of Law and Philosophy, the Oxford Internet Institute, and the Blavatnik School of Government.

Whilst the role is a grade 8 position, we would be willing to consider candidates with potential but less experience who are seeking a development opportunity, for which an initial appointment would be at grade 7 (£32,817 - £40,322 p.a.) with the responsibilities adjusted accordingly (for Grade 7, you would be expected to hold a doctoral degree in Computer Science OR be close to completion). This would be discussed with applicants at interview/appointment where appropriate.

This post is a full time, fixed term contract for 2 years, with the possibility of an extension for 1 more year. All applicants must complete an application form and submit a CV and supporting statement.

The closing date for applications is at 12 noon on 1 October 2021. Interviews are expected to be held in early October.

We are a Stonewall Top 100 Employer, Living Wage and Mindful Employer, holding an Athena Swan Bronze Award, HR excellence in Research and Race Equality Charter Bronze Award.

Our staff and students come from all over the world and we proudly promote a friendly and inclusive culture. Diversity is positively encouraged, through diversity groups and champions, for example Women in CS, as well as a number of family-friendly policies, such as the right to apply for flexible working and support for staff returning from periods of extended absence, for example shared parental leave.

Demonstrating a commitment to provide equality of opportunity. We would particularly welcome applications from women and black and minority ethnic applicants who are currently under-represented within the Computer Science Department. All applicants will be judged on merit, according to the selection criteria.

For further details and to apply please visit here.

We are very excited to welcome Prof. Ruben Verborgh from University of Ghent to join the EWADA team as an Oxford Martin School Visiting Scholar.

Professor Verborgh has a distinguished track record in Web technology research and its applied impact, and his visits to EWADA will be extraordinarily valuable to the ambitions of the EWADA project.

Ruben is a professor of Decentralized Web technology at Ghent University and a research affiliate at the Decentralized Information Group of CSAIL at MIT. He is a renowned expert in web decentralisation technologies and an influential advocate for the reformation of current web architectures. He has been one of the pioneers in the development of the vision of web decentralisation since early 2015. He has been pivotal to the development of the Social Linked Data (Solid) ecosystem, led by Professor Sir Tim Berners-Lee. Solid is a unique standards-based approach that pioneers the theoretical and practical realisation of web decentralisation to empower people to take back control of their data and regain control and autonomy of their data assets.

Ruben’s involvement in the EWADA programme will undoubtedly amplify the impact of our programme’s work with his deep knowledge of web decentralisation technologies and the coherent vision for future of web decentralisation that he possesses.

EWADA (Ethical Web and Data Infrastructure in the Age of AI) [1] is an ambitious 3-year programme that aims to reform the concentration of power on the Web by developing and deploying new forms of technical and legal infrastructure. Commencing in June 2021, the project is led by Prof. Sir. Nigel Shadbolt and Prof. Sir. Tim Berner-Lee and aims to investigate novel re-decentralisation architectures and develop critical privacy-preserving AI methods to re-establish citizen’s self-autonomy on the Web.

We are offering three internship positions this summer to work with Oxford Human Centred Computing (HCC) researchers [2] to develop prototype EWADA web applications, built upon the Solid (Social Linked Data) architecture from MIT [3]. Solid is a standards-based approach that provides practical solutions to web decentralisation and empowers people to take back control of their data and regain their self-autonomy. The candidates are expected to familiarise themselves with the current Solid architectural design and implementations and develop new decentralised web applications on top of Solid, including: enabling logging of our everyday digital health; enabling researchers to share their everyday research data and related artefacts; or enabling users to control data used by online platforms (such as YouTube) and their personalised digital experiences accordingly.

To effectively do this, candidates are expected to have experience with full stack web development and be interested and willing to learn about EWADA research and Solid ecosystems (in Javascript or Python). Moreover, the candidate will need to be able to work well with others, as these roles will be highly collaborative, requiring engaging with research scientists, project administrators, and co-investigators.

The post is expected to be full-time (36.5 hours) for 12 weeks, starting early August 2021 and ending in October 2021, £12.52 - 14.08 (Grade 3.8 - 4.7) per hour, depending on experience. The post does not have to be based in Oxford but will be subject to right to work in the UK.

The post is expected to be full-time for 12 weeks, starting 19 July 2021 (somewhat flexible) and ending in September 2021, £442.88-543.38 per week, depending on experience. The post does not have to be based in Oxford but will be subject to right to work in the UK.

Applications should be submitted to Dr Jun Zhao (jun.zhao@cs.ox.ac.uk), including a 2-page resume, and a short paragraph of background and interests.

The closing date for applications is 12 noon on Friday, 6 August 2021. Candidates will be shortlisted and invited for an interview by 3 August.

Selection criteria

Essential

• The ability to communicate information clearly, including technical content
• The ability and desire to learn about Solid-related research, to quickly acquire domain expertise needed for effectively developing new web applications
• The ability and desire to work with research staff to elicit information about how information should be organised
• Substantial experience developing web-based applications
• The ability to effectively manage time, to complete projects efficiently
• The ability to work independently and think creatively

Desirable

• Expertise with base Web platform languages & technologies including HTML, CSS and Javascript
• Expertise with Python and Linux-based Operating Systems
• Graphic and interaction design experience and expertise

Oxford Martin School awarded a multi-million research grant led by Prof Sir Nigel Shadbolt and Prof Sir Tim Berners-Lee to build the new generation world wide web and promote human autonomy and self-determination in the digital societies.

The programme brings together researchers from Oxford’s Department of Computer Science, Faculties of Law and Philosophy, the Oxford Internet Institute and the Blavatnik School of Government.

The ambitious EWADA programme officially kicked off in June 2021! We will be very excited to annouce several opening positions for summer internships 2021 and research positions in early Autumn!