Doctoral student in Computer Science: Secure Distributed AI
Örebro universitet / Högskolejobb / Örebro
2026-03-04
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hela Sverige Örebro University and the School of Science and Technology are looking for a doctoral student (PhD student) for the doctoral programme in Computer Science, concluding with a doctoral degree.
Start date: 1st of May 2026
Project description
The multi-disciplinary centre for cyber resilient AI, RESIST, is a national effort funded by the Swedish Strategic Research Foundation (SSF) to bring together leading researchers in AI and cybersecurity to develop novel solutions to cyber resilient AI for the benefit of Swedish industry and society. The vision is to make Sweden a role model in secure trustworthy AI by pioneering cyber resilience across the AI lifecycle. The research program focuses on four key themes: Trustworthy and Verifiable AI, Runtime Security Assurance, Robust and Secure AI-Supported Development, and Resilient Distributed and Agentic AI. RESIST will drive world-class research in the intersection between AI and cybersecurity through a strong, stimulating and well connected international research environment. Research outcomes will be validated in realworld scenarios with industry and public-sector partners. RESIST will also serve as a national hub for cyber resilient AI, promoting education, knowledge sharing, and policy development.
This PhD position is associated with the research theme Resilient Distributed and Agentic AI.
For systems with multiple agents, not only must the internal learning and reasoning of each agent function effectively, but the interactions between agents, as well as between agents and their environment, must also be safeguarded. That means it must be protected against malicious manipulation, unintended information leakage, protocol deviations, and unsafe or non-compliant behaviors that may compromise system integrity, safety, or performance. In this project, the research done by the PhD student will address the interaction layer in a multi-agent systems. It will focus on how to secure interactions can be generated based on emerging and pre-defined protocols for interaction between agents, between agents and their environment and between agents and humans. By an interaction protocol, we mean a formally specified set of rules that governs the permissible sequences of messages, actions, roles, and state transitions between agents and other entities, defining how information is exchanged, commitments are established, and coordinated behavior is achieved under given constraints. Such rules can be learned through observation of agent interactions, inferred from demonstrations and historical execution traces, or explicitly encoded from domain knowledge. The expected outcome of this thesis is a framework for testing agent interactions based on formal interaction specifications. Protocol robustness will be strengthened through execution guards generated both from protocol specifications and from observations of agent activity, evaluated in sandboxed environments as well as in real operational contexts. The research is tightly integrated with other research themes within the centre.
Supervision: The doctoral student will be supervised by Professor Amy Loutfi (primary) and Professor Franziska Klügl (secondary).
The programme, doctoral studentship, entry requirements and selection
To see the job advertisement in its entirety visit:
https://www.oru.se/english/career/available-positions/job/?jid=20260050Information
For more information about the programme and the doctoral studentship, please contact Prof. Amy Loutfi, email:
amy.loutfi@oru.se, and/or Prof. Franziska Klügl, email:
franziska.klugl@oru.se. For administration issues, contact Head of Unit Martin Magnusson, email:
martin.magnusson@oru.se.
At Örebro University, we expect each member of staff to be open to development and change; take responsibility for their work and performance; demonstrate a keen interest in collaboration and contribute to development; as well as to show respect for others by adopting a constructive and professional approach.
Örebro University actively pursues equal opportunities and gender equality as well as a work environment characterised by openness, trust and respect. We value the qualities that diversity adds to our operations.
Application to the programme and for the doctoral studentship
The application is made online. Click the button "Apply" to begin the application procedure.
For the application to be complete, the following electronic documents must be included:
• CV
• Proof that you meet the general and specific entry requirements (copies of the original certificate and official transcript for bachelor's and master's degrees)
• Independent project (degree project)
• Other relevant documents, course and degree certificates verifying eligibility
• Description of research interests - explaining why you are interested in this project and why you would be a good candidate for the role (1 page)
As a main rule, application documents and attachments are to be written in Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, or English. Certificates and documents in other languages verifying your qualifications and experience must be translated by an authorised translator to Swedish or English. A list of authorised translators can be obtained from Kammarkollegiet (the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency),
www.kammarkollegiet.se/engelska/start. When you apply for admission, you automatically also apply for a doctoral studentship.
More information for applicants will be found on our career site:
https://www.oru.se/english/career/available-positions/applicants-and-external-experts/ The application deadline is 1st of April, 2026. We look forward to receiving your application!
As we have already made our choices in terms of external collaboration partners and marketing efforts for this recruitment process, we decline any contact with recruitment agencies and advertisers.
As directed by the National Archives of Sweden (Riksarkivet), we are required to deposit one file copy of the application documents, excluding publications, for a period of two years after the appointment decision has gained legal force.
Ersättning Lönesättning enligt lönestege.
Så ansöker du Sista dag att ansöka är 2026-04-01
Klicka på denna länk för att göra din ansökan Omfattning Detta är ett heltidsjobb.
Arbetsgivare Örebro Universitet (org.nr 202100-2924)
Arbetsplats Örebro universitet
Jobbnummer 9777887