Head of Experimentation

Physical Superintelligence

5d

About The Position

Physical Superintelligence (PSI) combines physics, AI, and engineering to accelerate scientific discovery and develop consequential technologies. PSI is seeking a Head of Experimentation to build and lead its physical experimental program. The role turns scientific questions into decisive experiments, develops the team and laboratory capabilities to execute them, and ensures results withstand independent scrutiny. It is a hands-on leadership position working closely with PSI’s Physics, AI, and Engineering teams.

The Head of Experimentation sets experimental priorities, leads experimental apparatus and measurement-system development and operation, recruits and develops technical staff, and establishes rigorous standards for data quality and reproducibility. The role connects experimental results to modeling, AI research, and technology development, while overseeing laboratory resources, budgets, schedules, and safety. Leaders are expected to stay closely engaged with the science, apparatus, and team, and to apply the same evidentiary standards to AI outputs as to other research.

Requirements

• Eight or more years of experimental research or scientific instrumentation experience, including at least three years of direct people management.
• A demonstrated record of personally designing, building, and operating complex experimental systems and producing defensible results.
• Deep expertise in at least one experimental physics discipline, with the breadth and judgment to lead specialists outside the field.
• Strong command of calibration, measurement uncertainty, systematic errors, and experimental controls.
• Experience hiring technical teams and managing laboratory resources, equipment budgets, and demanding development schedules.
• Fluency in scientific programming, data analysis, and instrument automation, with the ability to use and critically evaluate AI-assisted tools.
• A PhD in physics, applied physics, engineering, or an equivalent record of experimental achievement.

Nice To Haves

• Experience establishing a laboratory or developing first-of-a-kind scientific instruments.
• Experience translating experimental results into reliable prototypes or industrial applications.
• Work spanning multidisciplinary research teams, industry, or national laboratories.

Responsibilities

• Set experimental priorities and translate research objectives into executable programs with clear milestones and decision criteria.
• Lead the design, commissioning, and operation of experimental apparatus and measurement systems.
• Recruit, manage, and develop experimental physicists, research engineers, and technicians.
• Establish rigorous standards for calibration, data quality, uncertainty analysis, and reproducibility.
• Connect experimental results to modeling, AI research, and further technology development.
• Manage equipment plans, budgets, schedules, and shared laboratory resources, with appropriate safety oversight.
• Review experimental designs, troubleshoot difficult measurements, and make evidence-based decisions about where to invest or stop.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree