PhD Studentship in Computer Science: Policy-Compliant Secure AI Newcastle University in United Kingdom

[100% home fees covered plus a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £21,805 (2026-27 UKRI rates). International applicants must cover the difference between Home and International fees.]

PhD Studentship in Computer Science: Policy-Compliant Secure AI at Newcastle University

This PhD studentship explores how to build AI services that stay useful while obeying legal, regulatory, contractual, or organisational constraints on data use and disclosure. The project is set in the Cryptography and AI Security Lab within the School of Computing at Newcastle University, and is especially relevant to researchers interested in trustworthy AI, privacy-preserving systems, cryptography, and secure machine learning.

The central challenge is that the data, model, and rules may all belong to different parties, making it difficult to enforce compliance when no single party can reveal everything it holds. The project will investigate what compliance means formally in such settings, how enforcement can be made verifiable rather than merely trusted, and what the performance and security costs of these guarantees might be. The work combines rigorous theory with practical implementation, including the design of precise requirements, development of methods that satisfy them, and prototype building fast enough to be useful in real systems.

Funding is strong and clearly defined: the award covers 100% of Home tuition fees and includes a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £21,805 (2026-27 UKRI rates). International applicants are welcome, but they must cover the difference between Home and International fees. The post is offered as a 3.5-year PhD studentship with a January 2027 start date.

Applicants should hold, or expect to obtain, a strong degree in computer science, cybersecurity, mathematics, or a closely related discipline. A minimum 2:1 Honours degree in computer science is required. A Masters degree is not essential if the applicant has a strong 2:1 or can demonstrate relevant work- or research-based experience, although a Masters may be beneficial. The project values experience in cryptography, machine learning, or systems implementation, together with strong programming skills and an interest in proofs and prototypes. Applicants should also be prepared to build knowledge in cryptography, privacy-enhancing technologies such as federated learning, mathematics including number theory and game theory, machine learning, and programming in C++, Java, or Python. Non-native English speakers need IELTS 6.5 overall with at least 5.5 in each sub-skill, and some international applicants may require ATAS clearance.

The application deadline is 10 October 2026. Candidates should apply through the Newcastle Portal, select the PhD Computer Science programme using course code 8050F, and enter studentship code COMP2183 in the relevant research proposal reference field. A personal statement is required, and applicants must submit their own project statement/proposal as part of the application.

Supervision is associated with Dr Aydin Abadi, along with Ameer Mohammed and Mohammad Naseri as listed on the advert. This makes the opportunity suitable for applicants seeking mentorship across cryptography, secure AI, and related research directions.