Chan Zuckerberg Initiative

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative was founded by Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg in 2015 to help solve some of society’s toughest challenges — from eradicating disease and improving education to addressing the needs of our local communities. Our mission is to build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone.

The Opportunity 

This leadership opportunity offers a chance to lead CZI's ambitious effort to transform cell biology—shifting from 90% experimental and 10% computational work to the reverse ratio over the next decade. As initiative leader, you will guide the development of AI-driven virtual cell models that predict and generate novel cell states, leveraging CZI's significant investment in computational infrastructure (including a 1000 H100 GPU cluster) and unparalleled biological datasets. You'll devise and execute strategies to build generative AI models that learn the "accessible space" and predict cell types, structure, function, and dynamics—all while maintaining rigorous experimental validation. 

The leader will coordinate across multiple domains, from genomics to proteomics, integrating static and dynamic cellular data, establishing robust data standards, and fostering collaboration between computational and experimental teams. This position offers a rare opportunity to establish a new paradigm in biological research that will dramatically accelerate both our fundamental understanding of biology and the development of novel cell therapies, while ensuring these powerful tools remain accessible to the broader scientific community and our family of institutes as we make progress towards achieving our goals as a science philanthropy.

The President of the Virtual Cell Models program will join our Science Leadership team, reporting to our Head of Science.

What You’ll Do

Leadership & Vision

• Direct the overall scientific vision and strategy for the Virtual Cell Models program, including decisions about key biological questions, model organisms, cell types, and the systems our organization will prioritize
• Bring a visionary perspective on how AI can transform the future of science, including a strong point of view on the strategic deployment AI/ML methods to advance our scientific research goals
• Build, lead and manage a major initiative within CZI, including recruiting and inspiring world-class scientists and engineers, organizing this initiative for optimal success, and driving teams to execute on multiple complex projects, often on accelerated timeframes
• Maintain scientific excellence across all data types and computational approaches used in this initiativeEnsure integration of diverse biological data into cohesive, multi-scale models that advance understanding of cells and their functionDevelop clear roadmaps and timely plans for resource allocation, prioritization, and our strategic direction for building virtual cell modelsFoster innovation and collaboration across experimental and computational domains internally at CZI’s institutes and externally with the science community
• Skillfully manage collaborations across multiple institutions, balancing immediate deliverables with long-term ambitious goals
• Effectively leverage CZI’s compute infrastructure, including a 1000 H100 GPU cluster to maximize scientific discovery and lead the development computationally driven biological research 

AI/ML × BIO Imperatives

• Guide the organization’s data generation requirements, standards, and quality control processes in collaboration with cross-functional teams
• Effectively drive and coordinate projects between experimental and computational teams
• Drive the organization’s approach to building, buying, and/or partnering with external collaborators to develop critical technologies 
• Report progress against concrete milestones and deliverables to the broader organization, including the senior leadership team

Strategic Accountability

• Serve as the intellectual owner of the initiative's direction and priorities
• Create the vision for how the Virtual Cell will transform biological research
• Build and maintain CZI's competitive differentiation and industry-leading position, and ensure its outputs advance understanding of human disease 
• Skillfully communicate CZI’s work and advancements externally as a public-facing spokesperson for the work
• Identify, develop, and maintain strategic partnerships when beneficial to advance the pace of innovation and delivery
• Maintain a sharp focus on applications and opportunities to advance understanding of human disease

What You’ll Bring

• Ph.D. in Machine Learning, Computational Systems Biology, or a related field with 15+ years of relevant experience
• Demonstrated background in AI/ML approaches to biological data analysis, including a deep understanding of diverse experimental methodologies across genomics, proteomics, and cell biology
• Proven track record in the use of AI/ML approaches to elucidate novel mechanisms and/or to make experimentally validated predictions about cell behaviors and responses to endogenous or exogenous perturbations. 
• Significant scientific leadership experience overseeing cross-functional technical teams in industry and/or and facilitating strategic collaborations with partners in the field
• Proven track record of success in recruiting world-class talent, efficiently and effectively managing large teams and budgets, and delivering large-scale ML projects in computational biology or applied biology (e.g. healthcare) on time and within budget
• Deep expertise in modern deep learning architectures, particularly for multimodal data generation, integration, and standards, as well as biological sequence modeling
• Comprehensive understanding of cellular biology and experience working with complex biological datasets such as single-cell technologies and imaging analysis
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills with the ability to inspire internal teams, collaborate, engage, and influence diverse stakeholders, and communicate CZI’s work and advancements externally as a public-facing spokesperson for the work
• Background in developing foundation models or large language models
• Track record of research publications and patents
• Experience with designing and deploying high-performance computing, distributed systems, and cloud-based infrastructure

Compensation

The Redwood City, CA base pay range for this role is $794,000 - $1,270,000. New hires are typically hired into the lower portion of the range, enabling employee growth in the range over time. Actual placement in range is based on job-related skills and experience, as evaluated throughout the interview process.

Benefits for the Whole You 

We’re thankful to have an incredible team behind our work. To honor their commitment, we offer a wide range of benefits to support the people who make all we do possible. 

• CZI provides a generous employer match on employee 401(k) contributions to support planning for the future.
• Annual benefit for employees that can be used most meaningfully for them and their families, such as housing, student loan repayment, childcare, commuter costs, or other life needs.
• CZI Life of Service Gifts are awarded to employees to “live the mission” and support the causes closest to them.
• Paid time off to volunteer at an organization of your choice. 
• Funding for select family-forming benefits. 
• Relocation support for employees who need assistance moving to the Bay Area
• And more!

If you’re interested in a role but your previous experience doesn’t perfectly align with each qualification in the job description, we still encourage you to apply as you may be the perfect fit for this or another role.

Explore our work modes, benefits, and interview process at www.chanzuckerberg.com/careers.