  AI alignment work is important from both a commercial and a safety lens. With
this paper, we aim to help actors who support alignment efforts to make these
efforts as effective as possible, and to avoid potential adverse effects. We
begin by suggesting that institutions that are trying to act in the public
interest (such as governments) should aim to support specifically alignment
work that reduces accident or misuse risks. We then describe four problems
which might cause alignment efforts to be counterproductive, increasing
large-scale AI risks. We suggest mitigations for each problem. Finally, we make
a broader recommendation that institutions trying to act in the public interest
should think systematically about how to make their alignment efforts as
effective, and as likely to be beneficial, as possible.
