Vice President, Small Molecules
$210k - $350k USD
Our mission is to make biology easier to engineer. Ginkgo is constructing, editing, and redesigning the living world in order to answer the globe’s growing challenges in health, energy, food, materials, and more. Our bioengineers make use of an in-house automated foundry for designing and building new organisms.
At Ginkgo Datapoints, we aren’t just building a CRO; we are building the data layer for the future of AI-driven drug discovery. We believe the biggest bottleneck in biotechnology isn't a lack of ideas, but a lack of high-quality, large-scale, and reproducible data.
As the VP of Small Molecules, you will own the vision, execution, and commercial success of our Small Molecule business. You will lead the charge in transforming traditional, slow-moving medicinal chemistry and ADME
Key Responsibilities
- Commercial & P&L Ownership: Define the go-to-market strategy for Small Molecule Datapoints. You will identify market gaps, set pricing models, and be accountable for revenue growth and operational efficiency.
- Technical Vision & Roadmap: Oversee the development of our automated small molecule synthesis and ADME profiling platforms (e.g., microsomal stability, CYP inhibition, kinetic solubility, cell permeability etc). You will ensure our data is "AI-ready"—standardized, high-fidelity, and generated at a scale that traditional labs cannot match.
- Strategic Team Leadership: Lead and mentor a high-performing team consisting of Operations Leaders, Automation Engineers, and an ADME Product Manager. You will bridge the gap between "bench science" and "industrialized automation."
- External Presence & Thought Leadership: Serve as the face of Ginkgo’s Small Molecule business. You will represent the company at major conferences, lead technical discussions with C-suite executives at Large Pharma, and cultivate community around new and existing initiatives such as our Virtual Cell Pharmacology Initiative.
- Government & Grant Strategy: Partner with our Government Affairs to identify opportunities and assist with or delegate technical writing for large-scale grant proposals (BARDA, DARPA, NIH) that leverage our synthesis and screening infrastructure.
- Build the Automated Synthesis Engine: Lead the ground-up development of our automated small molecule synthesis & purification platform. You will define the prioritized reaction schemas and hardware/RAC integrations required to produce high-fidelity chemical libraries at scale.
Global Logistics & Geopolitical Navigation: Apply your deep understanding of the global supply chain and geopolitical constraints (e.g., precursor availability, shipping regulations, regional manufacturing shifts) to ensure Ginkgo’s synthesis capabilities become resilient and competitive.
The Profile
We need a heavyweight Medicinal Chemist by training who is bored with the status quo of “traditional” discovery. You should have a deep respect for the craft of drug discovery, but a relentless dissatisfaction with its current speed and cost. You must possess the rare combination of deep chemical intuition and an engineer’s obsession with scale.
Required Qualifications
- Deep Industry Expertise: 20+ years of experience in Large Pharma or high-growth Biotech, with a proven track record in medicinal chemistry, lead optimization, and drug discovery.
- Scientific Credibility: PhD (or equivalent experience) in Organic Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, or a related field. You should be a recognized expert in the small molecule discovery cascade.
- Automation Fluency: Direct experience (or a strong conceptual mastery) of how hardware and software automation (e.g., Echo-MS, liquid handling, automated synthesis) can be leveraged to accelerate R&D.
- Commercial Acumen: Previous experience with P&L management, business development, or external-facing roles. You understand how to translate technical capabilities into "value-add" for a customer.
The "Ginkgo Mindset": You are an entrepreneur at heart. You thrive in fast-paced, high-stakes environments and are excited by the prospect of "programming" atoms and molecules with the same precision as code.
Why Ginkgo Datapoints?
Ginkgo has invested over $1 billion in automation infrastructure. We have the world’s most advanced automated labs, and we are now making that power available to the world through Datapoints. This can’t just be a job; you will be the driver for how the next generation of medicines will be designed.
"Our journey is about building better ways to work. With Datapoints, we're removing barriers—technical and business—giving teams the infrastructure they need to move faster, think bigger, and stay focused on discovery."
The base salary range for this role is $210,000.00-$350,000.00. Actual pay within this range will depend on a candidate's skills, expertise, and experience. We also offer company stock awards, a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental & vision coverage, health spending accounts, voluntary benefits, leave of absence policies, 401(k) program with employer contribution, 8 paid holidays in addition to a full-week winter shutdown and unlimited Paid Time Off policy.
Ginkgo has implemented a return to office policy effective October 1, 2025 with required in-office days 3x per week on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Some teams may require to be onsite 4-5 days per week and this will be discussed as part of the interview process. This policy applies to all employees who live within 50 miles of Ginkgo’s offices in Boston, MA, Emeryville, CA and West Sacramento, CA.
It is the policy of Ginkgo Bioworks to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees, employment applicants, and EOE disability/vet.
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