Senior Manager, Emerging Tech – New Technology Incubation

Samsung Research America•Mountain View, CA

7d•Onsite

About The Position

Samsung Research America's Emerging Technologies Group identifies and incubates innovative external technologies that accelerate Samsung's development and market position of its industry-leading consumer devices. We proactively research and create partnership & investment opportunities with breakthrough technologies that lay the foundation for the future of Samsung's core products & services across smartphones, tablets, wearables, PCs, TVs, appliances, and more. In addition to driving both the technical and business processes to validate and commercialize new technologies in Samsung's existing products, we maintain a strong pulse on the market to find the next big thing. The Sr. Manager, Emerging Tech – New Technology Incubation is responsible for envisioning and championing transformative concepts that can evolve into next-generation products and services for Samsung. This role sits at the intersection of deep technology foresight, creative product thinking, and disciplined execution — translating bold ideas into structured R&D roadmaps and actionable partnership strategies. In this role, you will ideate novel technology concepts grounded in market insight and emerging research, identify and engage external innovators across the North American startup and university ecosystems who can accelerate practical realization of those concepts, and build the strategic and organizational bridges needed to shepherd an idea from whiteboard to product. You will be equally comfortable presenting a speculative concept to a skeptical executive as you are diving into the technical merits of a promising early-stage technology with a university research team.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a technology or engineering discipline required (e.g., EE, CS, or similar); post-graduate degree (MS, PhD, and/or MBA) or equivalent combination of education, training, and experience
8+ years of professional experience spanning technology research, product strategy, or engineering, with a demonstrated track record of taking novel technology concepts from ideation to tangible outcomes (products, partnerships, or funded programs)
Broad technical fluency across multiple emerging technology domains (e.g., AI/ML, sensing, AR/XR, robotics, digital health, wireless technologies) with the ability to quickly develop working knowledge in new areas
Proven ability to originate and develop compelling technology concepts, not just evaluate externally presented ones
Demonstrated experience building and executing R&D roadmaps for early-stage, ambiguous technology initiatives
Effective interpersonal and relationship management skills, with a strong personal network within the startup, venture, and university research communities
Experience leading complex, multi-team, and cross-geographic projects to successful outcomes
Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the ability to tailor complex technical and strategic narratives to executive, technical, and business audiences alike
Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, highly ambiguous environment and drive progress without well-defined playbooks
Must be willing to travel domestically and internationally (20%)

Nice To Haves

Intellectual curiosity and the creativity to imagine products and experiences that do not yet exist
Entrepreneurial mindset: comfortable with risk, energized by ambiguity, and motivated by the prospect of building something genuinely new
Great communication skills: clear, patient, and well adapted to audience and situation — equally fluent in the language of technology and business
Analytical rigor to ground speculative concepts in structured, evidence-backed recommendations and respond credibly to executive challenges and objections
Strong organizational instincts to manage multiple incubation threads simultaneously, balancing long-horizon thinking with near-term execution
Ability to build trust and followership across internal stakeholders and external partners alike, without direct authority over either

Responsibilities

Generate and develop original technology concepts that address unmet consumer needs or create new market opportunities for Samsung, drawing on deep knowledge of emerging technology trends, competitive dynamics, and evolving consumer behavior
Navigate the North American startup landscape and university research community to identify early-stage innovations and research programs that can serve as building blocks for new product and service concepts; cultivate a broad and active network of founders, researchers, VCs, and technology transfer offices
Translate validated concepts into structured R&D roadmaps that define the technical milestones, resource requirements, partnership touchpoints, and decision gates needed to advance an idea from concept through proof-of-concept and toward commercialization
Identify and engage the right external partners — startups, academic labs, or research consortia — whose capabilities best complement Samsung's internal strengths; lead partnership discussions, structure collaborative evaluations, and drive proof-of-concept engagements with an eye towards longer-term commercialization, investment, or M&A
Develop compelling narratives around new technology concepts — including business cases, opportunity assessments, and strategic rationales — and present them persuasively to senior Samsung leadership across R&D and business units globally; serve as the internal champion for incubation initiatives from inception through executive approval
Engage and align multiple R&D labs, product divisions, and business units across Samsung's global organization to build internal momentum behind new concepts; coordinate cross-functional and cross-geo teams, define project milestones, and drive accountability to timelines and deliverables
Maintain a continuously updated perspective on breakthrough advances across relevant technology domains; synthesize signals from academic publications, patent landscapes, startup activity, and industry events to inform and refine the concept pipeline
Proactively structure loosely defined problem spaces into actionable frameworks, bringing clarity and momentum to early-stage initiatives where the path forward is inherently uncertain