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Senior Director, Medicinal Chemistry

Job Description

The successful candidate will utilize the Genesis Molecular AI platform and guide medicinal chemistry efforts to drug discovery programs from Hit ID through candidate nomination. They will collaborate and/or lead multidisciplinary drug discovery projects and be responsible for shaping medicinal chemistry strategy on those projects. The candidate will be expected to be a medicinal chemistry leader and strong communicator.


What You Will Do (Key Responsibilities)

  • Formulate medicinal chemistry strategies and utilize the Genesis platform to execute drug discovery programs from Hit ID through candidate nomination.

  • Use Structure-Based Drug Design (SBDD) principles, optimize physiochemical properties, interpret in vitro and in vivo ADME/PK/Toxicology data, and understand in vitro and in vivo biology data to drive programs.

  • Use data visualization software and metric based analysis to form medicinal chemistry hypotheses and prioritize strategies.

  • Communicate and work with industry collaborators on drug discovery projects.

  • Work with other drug discovery disciplines (biology, DMPK, software engineers, computational chemists) to drive hypothesis driven decisions, improve the platform and contribute to the scientific excellence of the company.

  • Communicate and engage regularly with project team members and management.

  • Mentor internal chemists as well as other scientific disciplines on medicinal chemistry principles.


What you’ll bring

  • PhD in synthetic organic chemistry or medicinal chemistry with at least 12 years of industrial drug discovery experience OR

  • MS in synthetic organic chemistry with at least 18 years of industrial drug discovery experience.

  • Expert medicinal chemistry knowledge with SBDD and physical property-based optimization of drug-like space.

  • Expert and metric-based and data visualization to drive prioritization and efficiency.

  • Strong communication skills, both in informal team settings as well as professional presentations.

  • Experience in leading drug discovery programs.

  • Expert synthetic chemistry knowledge and problem-solving skills.

  • Ability to adopt technology, strong interpersonal skills and willingness to learn.

  • Motivated team player with strong critical thinking skills, a high degree of independence, strong creative problem-solving skills, enthusiasm, integrity and ability to adapt to project changes.


What we offer

  • Competitive Pay

  • Stock Option Eligibility

  • 401(k) Plan

  • Open PTO Policy

  • Paid Company Holidays

  • Free lunch and snacks at our offices

  • Health Care Plan, including Medical, Dental, and Vision, fully covered for the employees

About Genesis Molecular AI

Genesis Molecular AI is pioneering foundation models for molecular AI to unlock a new era of drug design and development. Our generative and predictive AI platform, GEMS (Genesis Exploration of Molecular Space), integrates AI and physics into industry-leading models to generate and optimize drug molecules, including the breakthrough generative diffusion model Pearl for structure prediction. Genesis is backed by premier AI and life science investors, including a16z, NVIDIA, Rock Springs Capital, Menlo Ventures, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity, and Radical Ventures. Genesis has also signed category-leading AI-pharma deals, the most recent of which was a significant expansion with Incyte (see coverage in Forbes and GEN) with a total potential deal value of several billion dollars.


Genesis is headquartered in San Mateo, CA, with a fully integrated laboratory in San Diego. We are proud to be an inclusive workplace and an Equal Opportunity Employer.

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Job Details

Category
Business & Finance
Employment Type
Full Time
Location
San Diego, CA
Posted
Last updated
Jun 12, 2026, 03:37 PM

About Genesis Molecular AI

Genesis Molecular AI – headquartered in Burlingame, CA, with a fully integrated laboratory in San Diego and offices in New York – is pioneering foundation models for molecular AI to unlock a new era of drug design and development. We are using a proprietary state-of-the-art generative and predictive AI platform called GEMS (Genesis Exploration of Molecular Space), to accelerate and optimize small molecule drug discovery. The GEMS platform integrates AI and physics into industry-leading models to generate and optimize drug molecules, including the breakthrough generative diffusion model Pearl for structure prediction. GEMS accelerates hit ID through lead optimization and candidate selection by generating promising molecules for synthesis and experimental testing, and iterating this process through cycles of AI-enabled discovery and optimization. We have leveraged GEMS to build an internal pipeline with multiple programs against high-value targets, including data-poor and canonically undruggable targets where GEMS is uniquely advantaged. In addition, Genesis has signed AI platform collaborations across a range of therapeutic areas including Gilead (2024), and Incyte (2025). Genesis has raised over $300M in funding from top AI, technology and biotech investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Rock Springs Capital, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity, Radical Ventures, NVentures (NVIDIA's VC arm), BlackRock, and Menlo Ventures. To learn more about Genesis Molecular AI, or current employment opportunities, please visit our website.

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Senior Director, Medicinal Chemistry
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