How to apply for Threat Investigator US

About 10a Labs

10a Labs provides adversarial red teaming, model evaluations, and intelligence collection to companies deploying AI systems. Its Investigations Team responds to critical safety incidents across abuse areas including violence, hate, mental health, CBRNE, child safety, and cyber abuse. The company works with frontier AI labs, AI unicorns, Fortune 10 companies, and global technology platforms.

About the role

As a Threat Investigator, you will detect and respond to malicious uses and abuse, investigate the activity, draft reports, and make recommendations. You will handle escalations and reactive leads, including those not caught by existing safety systems. The role requires SQL and Python for querying, transforming, and understanding data, and involves exposure to sensitive and distressing content.

A typical day

A typical day may involve querying data with SQL and Python to detect malicious use or abuse, investigating activity behind escalations and reactive leads, and drafting reports with recommendations. You would also respond to critical safety incidents across abuse areas such as violence, hate, mental health, CBRNE, child safety, and cyber abuse. Specific team routines and schedules are not described in the job details; ask about them during the interview.

Who 10a Labs is looking for

• Has technical experience investigating threat actors, harmful behaviors, or other abusive activities.
• Is proficient in SQL and Python for querying, transforming, and understanding data.
• Can work Pacific Time (PT) hours and has valid work authorization in the United States.
• Is comfortable reviewing sensitive and distressing content, including sexual, violent, or otherwise disturbing material.

Tips for this application

• Confirm in your application that you can work PT hours and have valid US work authorization, since these are stated requirements.
• Describe specific investigations you have conducted into threat actors, harmful behaviors, or abuse, and name the abuse areas involved.
• Show how you used SQL and Python together in an investigation, not just that you know both tools.
• Mention any experience responding to escalations or reactive leads that existing safety systems missed.
• Acknowledge directly that you can handle sensitive and distressing content, and note any prior experience doing so.

What to cover in your cover letter

State your ability to work PT hours and your US work authorization. Give one or two concrete examples of investigations you led into threat actors or harmful behaviors, including the abuse area. Explain how you used SQL and Python to query, transform, and understand data in those investigations. Note your experience with escalations or reactive leads and your readiness to review sensitive and distressing content.

Research before applying

• Read 10a Labs' website at 10alabs.com to understand their adversarial red teaming, model evaluations, and intelligence collection services.
• Look into the types of clients 10a Labs serves, including frontier AI labs, AI unicorns, Fortune 10 companies, and global technology platforms.
• Find public information on how AI safety and threat-intelligence teams handle abuse areas like CBRNE, child safety, and cyber abuse.
• Check whether 10a Labs has published any reports, blog posts, or case studies from its Investigations Team.

Likely interview topics

Based on the job description, expect questions about:

• Walk through an investigation you conducted into a threat actor or harmful behavior, including how you detected it and what you recommended.
• How have you used SQL and Python together to query, transform, and understand data during an investigation?
• How would you handle an escalation or reactive lead that existing safety systems did not catch?
• Describe your experience with abuse areas such as violence, hate, mental health, CBRNE, child safety, or cyber abuse.
• How do you manage exposure to sensitive and distressing content, including sexual, violent, or otherwise disturbing material?

Common mistakes to avoid

• Applying without confirming you can work PT hours or have valid US work authorization, since both are stated requirements.
• Claiming SQL and Python skills without giving examples of using them to query, transform, and understand data in an investigation.
• Downplaying or ignoring the requirement to handle sensitive and distressing content, including sexual, violent, or otherwise disturbing material.