Technical Director, Machine Learning

CZ Imaging Institute

In our Science work, our mission is to support science and technology that will help make it possible to cure, prevent, or manage all diseases by the end of the century. We build open source software tools to accelerate science and generate more accurate and biologically important sources of data, fund scientific research worldwide to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and launched a family of institutes to do research that can’t be done in conventional environments. 

To accomplish our mission, we need to develop a dynamic, integrated view of biological systems in health and disease. The Chan Zuckerberg Institute for Advanced Biological Imaging (CZ Imaging Institute) aims to push forward the development and application of new imaging technologies over the next 15 years to obtain deep insights into the architecture of complex biological systems at the molecular level. Researchers will collaboratively develop breakthrough biological imaging systems centered around grand challenges that push the boundaries of what we can see and measure.

As an extension of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Imaging program, the CZ Imaging Institute will create breakthrough technologies — hardware, software, biological probes, data, and platforms — that will be made available to the scientific community and adopted worldwide through a combination of direct access to the institute, open sharing of advances, and commercial partnerships.

The Chan Zuckerberg Imaging Institute is seeking an experienced Technical Director of Machine Learning to lead our Machine Learning R&D teams focused on addressing the challenges of analyzing and interpreting light and electron microscopic data obtained of cells and tissues. These efforts are in support of the overall mission of the Chan Zuckerberg Imaging Institute which is to develop technologies and methodologies to reach a molecular understanding of dynamic cellular, tissue and organism function.

What You'll Do

• Provide strategic leadership for the CZ Imaging Institute by defining and developing critical projects and guide team members in the design, implementation, and refinement of computational and machine learning based  analysis methods and tools, that will enable the research groups and technology teams to better understand and interpret complex biological data sets
• Work with the executive management team to develop long term strategic goals and vision in the area of computational biology, data science and machine learning
• Manage and oversee cross functional teams  
• Lead the development of innovative machine learning models and algorithms to extract insights from large-scale data sets, develop new computational methods for the analysis of biological data from different sources, and provide guidance on the implementation of machine learning in special research projects
• Provide leadership to drive innovation in the field of machine learning and data analytics  in bioscience and imaging research relevant to the CZ Imaging Institute
• Build, organize and lead diverse teams to develop, deploy, & maintain innovative systems and software tools that enable the analysis and interpretation of complex and noisy data sets (in particular imaging data)
• Oversee  efforts to develop novel computational models which can improve our understanding of biological systems at molecular and cellular resolution
• Provide scientific insight and domain expertise to help build and deploy novel computational tools and methods useful across the CZII research groups and for the wider scientific research community
• Summarize and present complex and highly technical problems and solutions to audiences with a wide variety of skills and domain knowledge

What You'll Bring

• Enjoy working in a highly interactive and cross-functional collaborative environment with a diverse team of colleagues and partners
• Be responsible for hiring, developing, and retaining people to help them develop their full potential and build new skills and abilities
• Have a passion for actively directing and managing skilled individuals to consistently achieve high levels of motivation, enthusiasm, inclusion, and performance
• Have a PhD in computer science (focus on machine learning & data analytics), biocomputing or a related field and at least 10  years of experience leading a research and development team
• Have demonstrated experience building and training AI/ML models to address biological problems, and developing deep learning methods
• Have a proven track record  developing, managing and leading teams with diverse skill sets  and focused on the analysis and interpretation of complex  biological data

The Redwood City, CA base pay range for this role is $357,000 - $571,000. 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. Pay ranges outside Redwood City are adjusted based on cost of labor in each respective geographical market. Your recruiter can share more about the specific pay range for your location during the hiring process.

 #LI-Hybrid 

About Us

Priscilla Chan, a pediatrician and founder of The Primary School in East Palo Alto, and Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, announced the creation of CZI shortly after welcoming their first child in 2015 — with the goal of helping build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone. Their idea was ambitious but grounded in the belief that by harnessing technology, we can tackle some of the greatest challenges of our time in new ways to help drive faster progress.

CZI is committed to creating a more inclusive and diverse workplace. We welcome interest from individuals of all backgrounds and levels of experience who share our mission. If you’re interested in this 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!

CZI believes that vaccines are one of the most powerful tools to fight COVID-19 and save lives. It aligns to our mission and work to cure, manage, and prevent disease. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination will be required for all employees (with the exception of reasonable accommodations due to medical or religious beliefs). All visitors coming onsite to a CZI facility are required to show proof of COVID vaccination or take an onsite COVID test.