Head of AI Research
Clera
<h3>About the Role</h3><p style="min-height:1.5em">We are a seed-stage deeptech company building an advanced materials acceleration platform at the intersection of physics-informed AI, robotics, and autonomous experimentation — with a focus on the energy sector and beyond. Our mission: compress decades of materials discovery into years by connecting frontier machine learning with real-world experimental pipelines.</p><p style="min-height:1.5em">We are looking for a <strong>Head of AI Research</strong> to define and lead our AI-for-Materials research agenda. This is a foundational leadership role for someone who wants to shape not just a team, but a new scientific discipline — inventing the representations, learning paradigms, and evaluation frameworks that will underpin the next generation of materials discovery.</p><h3>What You'll Do</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Define a clear research vision and roadmap for AI-native materials discovery, setting thesis-level bets and identifying high-impact research directions.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Identify where existing ML paradigms fall short for physical matter and specify what must be built from the ground up.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Lead development of a <strong>Materials World Model</strong> that integrates experiments, simulations, and learned representations across scales.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Collaborate cross-functionally with Programs, Hardware & Automation, and Software Architecture teams to embed research into end-to-end discovery loops.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Ensure all models and pipelines are grounded in physical reality and continuously validated against experimental feedback — not just data-driven patterns.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Balance long-horizon research ambitions with near-term deliverables and scientific rigor.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Build, hire, mentor, and challenge a world-class team of senior ML researchers and computational scientists.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Foster a culture of deep thinking, honest evaluation, scientific taste, and intellectual courage.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Influence the broader field through external collaborations, publications, and a clear, opinionated point of view on the future of scientific AI.</p></li></ul><h3>What We're Looking For</h3><p style="min-height:1.5em"><strong>Required:</strong></p><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Advanced degree (PhD strongly preferred) in machine learning, computational physics, chemistry, materials science, or a closely related field.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">7+ years of experience in AI/ML research, including demonstrated leadership of senior individual contributors.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Deep expertise in representation learning, scientific ML, or foundation models with relevance to physical or chemical systems.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Strong intuition for — or direct background in — physics, chemistry, or materials science and their governing constraints.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Proven ability to operate at the boundary between theory, systems, and real-world experimental feedback.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Demonstrated scientific judgment: comfort with irreversible prioritization calls under uncertainty, and the ability to communicate complex ideas clearly to diverse audiences.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">English fluency required; additional languages are a plus.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Based in Berlin, Germany or willing to relocate.</p></li></ul><p style="min-height:1.5em"><strong>Nice to Have:</strong></p><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Experience working in or alongside autonomous laboratory / high-throughput experimentation environments.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Background at national labs, research institutes, or research-forward industry settings (e.g., materials, energy, or chemical sectors).</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Track record of cross-disciplinary collaboration bridging ML and physical sciences.</p></li></ul><h3>Location & Work Arrangement</h3><p style="min-height:1.5em">This is a <strong>full-time, on-site role based in Berlin, Germany</strong>. Candidates must be based in Berlin or willing to relocate. <strong>Visa sponsorship is not available</strong> for this position.</p><h3>Why This Role</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Rare opportunity to define an entire research discipline at an early-stage company with a technically ambitious mission.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Work at the frontier of AI and physical science — where models must meet reality.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Join a team with deep roots in top-tier research, national laboratories, and leading industrial science organizations.</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Shape the team, culture, and scientific direction from the ground up.</p></li></ul><p>Find more <a href="https://www.arbeitnow.com/english-speaking-jobs">English Speaking Jobs in Germany</a> on Arbeitnow</a>