Head of Chemistry

PhysicsX is a physics AI company for industrials, headquartered in the United Kingdom with offices in London, New York, and Singapore and an expanding presence in the Bay Area. The company partners with leading organisations in aerospace & defence, automotive, semiconductors, materials, and energy & renewables, building a new simulation software stack to deliver deep physics AI enablement across the entire engineering lifecycle. Chemistry and materials underpin many of PhysicsX’s highest-priority sectors, spanning semiconductors, electrochemistry, specialty and commodity chemicals, mining, and oil & gas. The team works from atoms to systems, applying approaches from DFT to AI-driven inverse problem solving at every scale between atomistic and continuum, carrying chemistry from the atom to the device, cell, reactor, and plant so customers can industrialise novel materials and processes within real manufacturing constraints.

About the role

You will build PhysicsX’s distinctive atoms-to-systems capability, coupling atomistic and molecular insight into continuum and systems-scale models so customers can industrialise novel materials and processes faster. This is a mandate to define and deliver a new era for chemists, materials scientists, process engineers, and operators. You will own chemistry capabilities across the company — from the team to the technology — setting technical direction and standards for chemistry and leading the chemistry team across two streams: Capability and Customers.

Responsibilities

• Capability: Direct the team building chemistry capabilities. Work with Product to productise functionality, and with Research to push the frontier across chemistry and AI. Partner with industry leads so the roadmap delivers the greatest value to customers.
• Customers: Work with Delivery leads to ensure the right people are on the right customer projects and well supported, and grow the team with the right skill sets. Act as hiring manager for the team across both streams.
• Serve as the foremost chemistry voice in conversations with prospective customers; read signal from those interactions and decide which technical directions to pursue, how best to support customers’ chemistry needs, and which capabilities to use or develop.
• Decide which machine learning approaches for chemistry to build, which to adopt, and how they couple into continuum and systems-scale models.
• Own the balance between capability development and time with customers.
• Stay hands-on enough to go deep with the team on hard technical problems.

Performance is judged in equal parts by the success driven with customers and the uptake of new, distinctive capabilities.

Requirements

• PhD in computational chemistry or computational materials science; alternatively, a PhD in a related field such as chemical engineering, materials science, electrochemistry, or applied physics with substantial research in atomistic or multiscale modeling.
• 6+ years of deep technical work since PhD, in industry or an industry-facing setting.
• Hands-on depth in atomistic simulation and machine learning interatomic potentials.
• Working knowledge of techniques at other scales, including molecular, mesoscale, phase-field, reactive flow, and process simulation, and — critically — how to connect them: which quantities must carry from one scale to the next, and where a surrogate can replace a simulation.
• Applied this expertise to real industrial problems with direct experience in relevant industries; semiconductors, electrochemistry, or catalysis would be ideal.
• Led and grown a team of 5+ technical specialists: set research and capability direction, hired, and developed them.
• Built a technical roadmap, prioritized it against competing demands, and owned its delivery.
• Communicate clearly in all directions: up to leadership; across to Product, Research, and Delivery; out to customers; and down to the team. Lay out decisions, options, and constraints so nobody’s guessing.
• Credibility with both a deep technical team and senior leadership.
• Ideally, recent years at an AI-led materials company or start-up, setting technical direction at pace in a field still being defined, where you had to build the approach as you went.
• Deep entrepreneurial streak: you want to build, lead, and grow things; you want real responsibility and to be held accountable for it.
• Energized rather than drained by ambiguity and a fast-changing environment; you forge your own path and help others forge theirs.
• Willing to travel to customer sites and PhysicsX offices, on average 3–4 weeks per quarter, including internationally.

Benefits

• Equity options — share meaningfully in the company you’re helping to build.
• 5% contribution to 401(k) — build long-term security with a strong retirement plan.
• Free team lunch 1×/week.
• Private health insurance — comprehensive cover for you.
• Enhanced parental leave — 3 months full pay paternity and 6 months full pay maternity leave.
• 20 days of Annual Leave (+ Public Holidays).
• Personal development — dedicated support for learning, development, and leveling up over time.
• Gympass / Wellhub (subsidized) — for you and up to 3 family members, supporting both physical and mental wellbeing.
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA) — set aside pre-tax dollars for eligible healthcare expenses.

Pay

Salary for this position in the USA is from $200,000 to $300,000.

Schedule

• Hybrid model blending time together in the New York office with work-from-home days.
• Travel to customer sites and PhysicsX offices, on average 3–4 weeks per quarter, including internationally.
• Role is available in the UK or US; this posting is for the New York location.