AI Research & Product Strategy Lead - Handshake AI

AI Research & Product Strategy Lead – Handshake AI

Advanced degree (PhD preferred) or equivalent experience in Machine Learning, Computer Science, or related fields.
Hands-on experience with LLMs and proficiency in frameworks like PyTorch, JAX, or TensorFlow.
Track record of publishing in top ML venues (ACL, EMNLP, NAACL, NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, COLM, etc.) or equivalent real-world research impact.
Exceptional communication skills, comfortable presenting complex technical topics to audiences ranging from C-suite to PhD-level researchers.
Ability to empathize with customer needs, influence decision-makers, and drive internal alignment on strategic priorities.
Proven capacity to define problems, propose solutions, and execute effectively in fast-moving, high-stakes contexts.
Strong bias toward action and a willingness to innovate beyond traditional product playbooks.
Comfort debugging ML models and iterating on experiments at scale.
Familiarity with cloud technology stacks (AWS, GCP, or similar) and ability to handle data workflows or ML pipelines in a production environment.

Serve as Handshake’s primary liaison to leaders at frontier AI labs.
Maintain active communication channels with AI researchers and technical buyers.
Dig beyond the surface of customer requests to uncover unarticulated needs.
Bridge the gap between technical buyers and the product team.
Define and prioritize roadmaps addressing tough questions in AI talent.
Collaborate with engineering and operations to scope, prototype, and launch solutions that push the boundaries of AI evaluation and deployment.
Translate AI research challenges into clear product objectives.
Stay current with the AI/ML research landscape and turn cutting-edge ideas into proof-of-concepts.
Work with engineering, operations, and business teams to deliver end-to-end solutions, from concept through production.