Director

In partnership with the Advanced Research and Innovation Agency (ARIA), Pillar VC will launch a fellowship program placing 30 top AI researchers in leading UK science labs over the next three years. Fellows will spend 12 months embedded in labs focusing on neuroscience, robotics, climate science, and more. Each fellow will receive a competitive stipend, access to state-of-the-art computing resources, and the opportunity to work on some of the most pressing scientific challenges of our time. Through the program, Pillar VC will deepen its UK presence, investing in ecosystem development, events, programming, and post-fellowship support to nurture these projects into successful ventures.

The Executive Director will lead the Pillar VC AI in Science Fellowship, including fostering relationships with the top UK academic science labs across areas of deep tech and biotech, recruiting AI/ML Fellows from labs and industry, helping fellows create translational projects, and building an AI advisory board. The Executive Director will cultivate the Pillar VC ecosystem across the UK by developing events and programming to support the fellows and recruiting mentors to support the projects. This person will work closely with the ARIA team and other ARIA program partners, representing Pillar VC at ARIA events, programs and activities.

Ideal candidates should have strong industry and academic networks in AI/ML and frontier areas of deep tech and biotech research, and experience in the creation of startups, non-profits, or other transnational organizations. Candidates must have an established UK network and be able to hit the ground running. Must be based in the UK or willing to relocate.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional experience
• Strong network within the UK AI/ML and/or UK academic ecosystem
• Proven track record in identifying and nurturing early-stage technology opportunities experience working in venture capital a significant plus
• Excellent leadership, communication, and relationship-building skills
• Understanding of tech transfer and IP processes in academic settings
• Experience in building partnerships between academia and industry
• Bachelor’s degree in a field relevant to deep tech or biotech
• Understanding of AI/ML trends and applications, particularly in biotech and deep tech fields
• Strong familiarity with the UK startup, academic, and venture capital ecosystem is strongly preferred
• This role will report to one of the Pillar VC partners

Key responsibilities

• Execute overall strategy and vision for the Pillar VC AI in Science Fellowship.
• In partnership with Pillar VC team members, build and maintain relationships with UK universities, faculty sponsors, and ARIA leadership
• In partnership with Pillar VC team members, select fellowship candidates
• Identify and evaluate potential investment opportunities within the fellowship program
• Build and manage the AI advisory panel for the program
• Lead negotiations of tech transfer IP contracts with university technology transfer offices
• Provide mentorship and guidance to fellows on innovation and commercialization
• Build an expert network to support fellows during and after the program
• Ensure the program meets its objectives in fostering translational research
• Represent Pillar VC in the UK ecosystem
• Collaborate closely with Pillar VC’s leadership to ensure alignment with firm strategy

Who We Are

Pillar VC is a seed-stage venture capital firm based in Boston co-founded by 41 leading CEOs, including the founders of DraftKings, Iora Health, Ginkgo Bioworks and Constant Contact. We’re the first-capital-in for scientists and engineers building in deep tech and bio. We make big bets on big ideas at inception.

Over half of our investments emerge out of universities. We work with founders months to years in advance of commercialization, collaborating with PhD students, postdocs and faculty. Our team helps by validating customer demand for a founder’s research, recruiting key team members, developing business plans, navigating licensing agreements, and building syndicates with strong co-investors. We’ve made over 50 investments in academic spinouts, including Algorand, Asimov, PathAI, Neural Magic, and Verve Motion.

Our investments span enterprise/infrastructure, vertical SaaS, fintech, crypto, manufacturing, logistics, robotics, healthtech, SynBio, genomics, longevity and precision medicine, among other categories. We’re proud investors in companies including Jellyfish, Abridge, Higharc, Hometap, Kula Bio, and VideaHealth.

We started Pillar VC with the belief that there has to be a better way for founders and investors to align. We began with a simple hypothesis — that if we treat founders the way we would want to be treated, good things will happen. That if we align every incentive, every action and decision to realize mutual benefit, we will engender trust, and from that, achieve profound results. It’s that simple.

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