Director of Nucleic Acid Delivery

Your Impact at LILA

The Director of Nucleic Acid Delivery will lead the discovery and engineering of next-generation delivery systems for nucleic acid cargo. This role will drive the design of targeted lipid nanoparticles (tLNPs) and other biological delivery modalities to enable precise delivery of nucleic acids across diverse tissues and cell types. Leveraging the Lila Sciences AI platform and AI Science Factory, this leader will guide an interdisciplinary team of scientists in integrating AI-driven hypothesis generation, robotics-enabled experimentation, and biological insight to accelerate discovery of transformative delivery technologies. The role will focus on the biological targeting and functional delivery, while collaborating closely with formulation scientists responsible for lipid composition and formulation optimization. This position is ideal for a creative scientific leader who believes that AI, automation, and integrated biological systems thinking will fundamentally reshape therapeutic discovery. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in nucleic acid delivery and a passion for building collaborative teams.

What You'll Be Building

• Lead and build a high-performing team of senior scientists, scientists, and research associates focused on nucleic acid delivery technology development.
• Drive the discovery and engineering of targeted lipid nanoparticle systems for delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics.
• Design and evaluate targeting ligands, conjugation strategies, and nanoparticle architectures that enable tissue- and cell-specific delivery.
• Develop and implement innovative biological assays and screening platforms to evaluate delivery efficiency, biodistribution, cellular uptake, and functional nucleic acid expression or editing.
• Leverage the Lila AI platform and AI Science Factory to accelerate design–build–test–learn cycles through AI-driven experimental design and robotics-enabled experimentation.
• Collaborate closely with formulation scientists to integrate biological targeting strategies with lipid chemistry and nanoparticle formulation optimization.
• Explore and evaluate next-generation delivery modalities that extend beyond traditional LNPs.
• Establish strategic scientific direction for nucleic acid delivery research and ensure alignment with company-wide therapeutic goals.
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and scientific rigor, mentoring team members and developing future leaders in the field.

What You’ll Need to Succeed

• PhD in molecular biology, bioengineering, chemical biology, biomedical engineering, pharmacology, or a related discipline with 8–10+ years of relevant industry or academic experience, or a BS/MS with 12–15+ years of experience in nucleic acid delivery or genetic medicine.
• Demonstrated expertise in lipid nanoparticle technologies, nucleic acid delivery systems, or related genetic medicine platforms.
• Strong track record of scientific leadership and mentorship, including managing multidisciplinary research teams.
• Experience designing and executing in vitro and in vivo assays to measure delivery efficiency, biodistribution, and functional activity of nucleic acid therapeutics.
• Deep understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying delivery, including cellular uptake, endosomal escape, tissue targeting, and intracellular trafficking.
• Experience collaborating across disciplines including formulation chemistry, molecular biology, protein engineering, and pharmacology.
• Track record of impactful scientific contributions demonstrated through publications, patents, or therapeutic development programs.
• Excellent communication and strategic thinking skills with the ability to translate complex scientific ideas into actionable research programs.

Bonus Points For

• Direct experience developing targeted LNP systems or ligand-directed nanoparticle delivery technologies.
• Expertise in RNA therapeutics, gene editing systems (e.g., CRISPR/Cas), siRNA, mRNA, or DNA therapeutics.
• Experience integrating AI-driven discovery tools, high-throughput experimentation, or automated laboratory platforms into biological research.
• Experience working in highly collaborative environments spanning biology, chemistry, computational science, and engineering.
• Demonstrated ability to translate early discovery concepts into therapeutically relevant delivery platforms.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with a passion for pushing the boundaries of AI-enabled scientific discovery.

Compensation

We offer competitive compensation including bonus potential and generous early equity. The final offer will reflect your unique background, expertise, and impact.

Expected Base Salary Range $184,000 — $256,000 USD

About LILA

Lila Sciences is building Scientific Superintelligence™ to solve humankind's greatest challenges. We believe science is the most inspiring frontier for AI. Rather than hard-coding expert knowledge into tools, LILA builds systems that can learn for themselves. LILA combines advanced AI models with proprietary AI Science Factory™ instruments into an operating system for science that executes the entire scientific method autonomously, accelerating discovery at unprecedented speed, scale, and impact across medicine, materials, and energy. Learn more at www.lila.ai.

Guided by our core values of truth, trust, curiosity, grit, and velocity, we move with startup speed while tackling problems of historic importance. If this sounds like an environment you'd love to work in, even if you don't meet every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply.

We’re All In

Lila Sciences is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. Information you provide during your application process will be handled in accordance with our Candidate Privacy Policy.

A Note to Agencies

Lila Sciences does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Lila Sciences or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Lila Science’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Lila Sciences, and Lila Sciences will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.