Safety and Alignment Group Ahmedabad
We bring together researchers, builders, investors, and policy folks in Gujarat to engage with the hardest questions in AI — where it's going, what could go wrong, and what anyone here can actually do about it. Learn more →
Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
Our members have worked with
We are not affiliated with or endorsed by these organisations.
Small-group discussions on a single focused question, with pre-reads circulated beforehand. Planned as a monthly session. Mostly curated; some open.
Working through foundational papers together, biweekly. One paper at a time — circulated a week before so everyone comes in prepared.
Structured, steel-manned arguments on contested questions in AI safety. Oxford-style format — not yet scheduled.
Sessions with researchers and practitioners working on safety, in India and abroad.
In the works: AI safety bootcamps and, eventually, fellowships — structured ways for people in Gujarat to go from curious to contributing. If you'd like to help make these happen, write to us.
Reading circle · Open · Pre-read circulated a week before · Biweekly
Reading circle · Open · Pre-read circulated a week before · Biweekly
Talk · NULL Ahmedabad · 10:30 AM · Silver Oak University, Ahmedabad · Speaker: Mann Acharya
Talk · NULL Ahmedabad · 10:30 AM · Silver Oak University, Ahmedabad · Speaker: Mann Acharya
Discover and connect talent
We are finding and connecting people across western India who have the will to work on something that matters. Building a directory of researchers, founders, and practitioners who want to contribute to AI safety and linking them to each other and to the global field.
Create a space for regular engagement
Have a place where people can regularly discuss, discover, and get into AI safety and alignment work. Reading circles, roundtables, debates, and talks — a rhythm of serious conversation that builds real understanding over time, not one-off events.
Collect ground-level data on AI risk perception
Understand what the growth of AI means to people here — common people, academics, VCs, founders. How are risks perceived? What do people worry about, and what do they dismiss? This kind of ground-level data from India barely exists and matters enormously for governance and field strategy.
Encourage for-profit AI safety work
Push AI safety problem statements into companies and the startup ecosystem. We believe companies, institutions, and labs have the possibility to do good. Safety should not be confined to nonprofits and research institutes — it needs to be embedded in the products people are actually building.
Connect national and global governance efforts
Bridge India's policy conversation with the global one. AI governance cannot be designed in a handful of Western capitals. India's regulatory posture, its institutional capacity, and its perspective on what counts as a catastrophic outcome all need representation in the global discussion.
Run fellowships and bootcamps
Route people toward direct contribution through structured programs — fellowships, bootcamps, and introductions to the global field. The reading group is not the end state; it is how people figure out whether they want to go further.
The papers, courses and books we keep coming back to — from first orientation to technical alignment, governance, and ways to go deeper.
Orientation
If you're new to all of this, start here. No technical background needed.
5 itemsTechnical alignment
The core research problem: how do you make capable AI systems reliably do what their designers and users intend?
6 itemsRisk & strategy
The bigger-picture arguments — for and against treating advanced AI as a potential catastrophe.
4 itemsGovernance
Policy levers, international coordination, and what governments can do now.
3 itemsIndia
The domestic AI landscape — policy, community, and ecosystem.
4 itemsBooks
For longer-form treatment. Links go to overviews; copies circulate within the group.
3 itemsAfter each session we publish short notes — what was argued, what changed minds, what we're reading next. The same Substack doubles as our newsletter: subscribe to hear about upcoming events and programs.
Venues, co-hosts, and organisations that have supported our sessions.
Interested in hosting a session or supporting a program? Get in touch.
Mann Acharya
Researcher @ The Millennium Project
Kulraj Chavda
Technical Ops @ FAR.AI
Tell us a little about yourself and what draws you to this. We'll add you to the list and let you know about sessions that fit.
For partnerships, speaking, or anything else:
Get in touch ↗
