The University of Waterloo is a major Canadian research-intensive university based in Waterloo, Ontario, with over 41,000 students and a strong focus on engineering, computer science, and applied research. Within the AI safety space, Waterloo faculty are engaged in technical research on safe agentic systems, constraint learning, evaluation methods for AI, and AI in the legal system. The university hosts the Waterloo Data and Artificial Intelligence Institute (Waterloo.AI) and an active AI Group at the Cheriton School of Computer Science, both of which emphasize safe, fair, interpretable, and trustworthy AI. Waterloo has received direct AI safety funding from Coefficient Giving (formerly Open Philanthropy) and Canada's CIFAR-administered AI Safety Institute program.
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Theory of Change
Waterloo's AI safety-relevant work operates through multiple channels: producing technical research on constraint learning and safe agentic systems that can be adopted by AI developers; developing evaluation benchmarks and methods that improve the field's ability to measure AI safety properties; training the next generation of researchers through graduate programs and co-op placements at AI companies; and informing policy through collaborations like the CIFAR-Canadian Public Policy journal partnership on AI safety. The underlying assumption is that improving technical methods for detecting, constraining, and evaluating unsafe AI behavior, and embedding those methods in training rather than only deployment, will reduce the risk of harmful AI systems being deployed at scale.
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from Open Philanthropy
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- Last Updated
- Apr 2, 2026, 9:53 PM UTC
- Created
- Mar 20, 2026, 2:34 AM UTC