Director / Senior Director, AI for Life Sciences
About The Position
Lila is embarking on a transformative mission to redefine the future of medicine by combining automated large-scale data generation with scientific superintelligence. At Lila, we don't just use AI to analyze biology; we are building the loop where AI and automation co-evolve to solve the hardest problems in medicine. To this end, we are forming a new function, Life Science AI (LSAI), with the goal of researching automated reasoning on biological data by combining state-of-the-art machine learning with breakthrough biology. As a member of the LSAI leadership team, you will be a founding architect of this vision. You will play a critical role in shaping the culture, technical strategy, and therapeutic impact of AI at Lila. This is a high-impact leadership role reporting directly to the SVP of Life Science AI. Depending on the candidate’s depth of expertise, this role may focus on a single domain or span multiple pillars to drive platform-wide AI strategies.
Requirements
- PhD with a focus on computation, specifically in Computational Biology, Computer Science, or AI-driven drug discovery.
- A portfolio of peer-reviewed publications or patents. We are specifically looking for first-author contributions in premier venues: ML Focus: ICLR, ICML, or NeurIPS (Full track). Biology/Nature Focus: Nature Methods, Nature Biotechnology, Nature, Science, or Cell.
- Demonstrated experience building and leading multidisciplinary teams and managing complex research portfolios in a fast-paced environment.
- Exceptional skills in translating high-dimensional ML concepts for biological scientists and presenting strategic visions to executive stakeholders.
- Successful candidates will demonstrate deep expertise in one or more of the following areas. The final scope of the role will be tailored to the leader’s unique background: Protein Design: De novo protein scaffolds, binders, therapeutic antibodies, and enzyme engineering. Nucleic Acid Engineering: DNA/RNA vaccines, regulatory elements (UTRs, promoters), and viral vector optimization. Cell Biology: Foundation models for -omics (e.g., scRNAseq), perturbation data, and spatial profiling to drive target identification and mechanism-of-action studies.
Responsibilities
- Team Leadership & Scientific Strategy: Recruit, mentor, and lead a high-performing team of ML researchers and computational biologists. Foster a culture of "bilingual" excellence that thrives at the intersection of AI and biology.
- Cross-Functional Synergy: Act as the primary bridge to our Life Science Experimental Research team. You will ensure computational designs are optimized for "wet-lab" validation and architect the active learning feedback loops that allow experimental data to continuously improve our generative models.
- Product Integration: Partner with Life Science Product Management to align technical innovations with Lila’s commercial goals, ensuring our AI capabilities translate directly into therapeutic priorities.
- Foundational Culture: As a founding member of LSAI, you will establish the standards for engineering excellence, reproducible research, and collaborative innovation across the organization.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Director
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
Number of Employees
101-250 employees
