BERI-CSER Collaboration
About
The BERI-CSER Collaboration is one of the foundational partnerships of the Berkeley Existential Risk Initiative (BERI), a US-based 501(c)(3) public charity founded in 2017 by Andrew Critch. CSER, the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, is an interdisciplinary research centre at the University of Cambridge founded in 2012 by Huw Price, Martin Rees, and Jaan Tallinn. The collaboration was established around 2017-2018 as one of BERI's three original main collaborations, alongside the Center for Human-Compatible AI (CHAI) at UC Berkeley and the Future of Humanity Institute (FHI) at Oxford. Under this collaboration, BERI acts as a multiplier on CSER's research efficiency by providing services that are difficult to obtain through Cambridge's university administration. This includes hiring research assistants, engineers, writers, and support staff; purchasing equipment, software, and travel expenses; and providing administrative support for events and organizational operations. BERI is not primarily a grantmaker but rather fills gaps in university systems to help CSER accomplish its mission more effectively. Specific projects supported through the collaboration have included extending Simon Beard's work with Patrick Kaczmarek on the ethical considerations of extinction and the long-term future, resulting in several published academic papers. BERI has also supported CSER's efforts to develop a masters degree program focused on high-impact or extreme risk, and has contracted researchers for projects such as Bruce Tsai's research on Grand Futures with Anders Sandberg. BERI's Executive Director Elizabeth Cooper is a visiting researcher at CSER, maintaining a direct connection between the organizations. As of the most recent available information, the BERI-CSER collaboration remains active and is listed among BERI's main collaborations. In 2023, the collaboration was described as remaining slow and steady, with BERI paying for group social meals and managing staff transitions for ongoing projects. BERI's collaboration model involves raising funds from donors interested in supporting specific collaborations, with approximately 10% of collaboration-related grants covering BERI's core operations including executive salaries. The collaboration has been supported by major funders including Jaan Tallinn, Open Philanthropy, and the Survival and Flourishing Fund.
Theory of Change
BERI's theory of change for the CSER collaboration is that university research groups working on existential risk reduction are often constrained by bureaucratic university administration systems that make it difficult to hire flexibly, purchase needed resources, or move quickly on important projects. By providing an external administrative and financial infrastructure that bypasses these constraints, BERI multiplies CSER's effectiveness and impact. This enables CSER researchers to focus on their core mission of studying and mitigating existential risks -- including AI risks, biological risks, and environmental risks -- rather than navigating university bureaucracy. The collaboration assumes that CSER's research directly contributes to better understanding and management of existential risks, and that removing operational bottlenecks significantly increases the quantity and quality of that research output.
Details
- Start Date
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- End Date
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- Expected Duration
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- Funding Raised to Date
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- Last Updated
- Apr 3, 2026, 1:18 AM UTC
- Created
- Apr 3, 2026, 1:18 AM UTC