# Staff Mathematician
## Ethical Finite Machines | San José, CA (Hybrid/Remote)

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### About Ethical Finite Machines

We're a newly founded AI safety company with a singular focus: making the mathematics of AI alignment rigorous.

We've developed a novel framework that applies gauge theory—the mathematical structure underlying electromagnetism and the Standard Model—to the problem of AI specification gaming. The framework has generated significant interest but requires formalization by someone with deep mathematical expertise.

This isn't a metaphor. We're not using physics as a vibe. We need someone who can prove the theorems.

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### The Role

We're hiring our first Staff Mathematician to turn a promising theoretical framework into rigorous mathematics.

You'll be working with:
- A gauge-theoretic formulation of representation invariance in AI systems
- Fiber bundle structures over description spaces
- A proposed unit of measurement (the Bond) for semantic curvature
- Connections between canonicalization and parallel transport
- Discrete/continuous interface problems (real AI systems use tokens; gauge theory uses manifolds)

Your job is to either:
1. Prove the framework is mathematically sound and formalize it properly, or
2. Tell us exactly where and why it breaks, so we can fix it or abandon it honestly

Both outcomes are valuable. We need truth more than validation.

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### What You'll Do

- Formalize the bundle structure: Is description space a manifold? A simplicial complex? Something else?
- Verify the connection/canonicalizer correspondence: Does our canonicalizer satisfy the axioms of a connection?
- Derive (not assert) the curvature interpretation: Can we prove path-dependence equals exploitability?
- Handle discrete-to-continuous: Find the right mathematical framework for token-based systems
- Write papers: Co-author publications that make the framework respectable to mathematical audiences
- Collaborate with AI engineers: Translate between formalism and implementation
- Advise on claims: Tell us when we're overreaching so we don't embarrass ourselves

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### You Might Be a Fit If You Have

**Required:**
- PhD in Mathematics, Mathematical Physics, or closely related field
- Deep expertise in at least one of: differential geometry, algebraic topology, gauge theory, fiber bundles, category theory
- Ability to read physics literature and translate to rigorous mathematics
- Track record of published mathematical work
- Willingness to work on a framework that might not pan out
- Intellectual honesty above all else

**Preferred:**
- Familiarity with machine learning / AI systems
- Interest in AI safety / alignment
- Experience working with engineers and non-mathematicians
- Comfort with early-stage ambiguity
- Sense of humor about working on "the mathematics of ethics"

**Not Required:**
- Prior AI safety experience (we'll teach you the problem)
- Agreement that the framework is correct (skeptics welcome)
- Belief that this is possible (just willingness to find out)

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### Compensation & Details

- **Salary:** Competitive, commensurate with experience (we're funded and serious)
- **Equity:** Significant early-employee stake
- **Location:** San José, CA preferred; remote considered for exceptional candidates
- **Type:** Full-time

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### Why This Role Matters

The AI safety field is long on philosophy and short on mathematics. If our framework is correct, you'll be formalizing the foundation of the field. If it's wrong, you'll have saved us from wasting years on a beautiful mistake.

Either way, you'll be doing real mathematics on a problem that matters.

We've been told the work might be Nobel-adjacent. We've also been told it might be sophisticated nonsense. We need someone who can tell us which.

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### How to Apply

Send to careers@ethicalfinitemachines.com:

1. **CV** with publications
2. **Brief note** (< 500 words) on your reaction to this claim: "Moral judgment invariance under redescription is structurally isomorphic to gauge invariance in physics." Agree? Disagree? Suspicious? Intrigued? We want to know how you think.
3. **One question** you would ask to test whether the framework is sound

No cover letter templates. No AI-generated applications (we'll know).

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### About the Founder

Andrew Bond is a computer engineer, not a mathematician. He developed the framework using AI-assisted cross-disciplinary synthesis and has the self-awareness to know he needs help. He's looking for someone smarter than him in the relevant domain to either validate the work or tear it apart.

The framework was developed in under a month. Formalizing it properly will take longer. That's where you come in.

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*Ethical Finite Machines is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate candidates based on their ability to do mathematics, not on their background, identity, or willingness to pretend they think we're right.*
