[Hiring] Director of Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence @Thorn

Role Description

As Thorn’s Director of Machine Learning & AI, you will lead and build the team responsible for applying machine learning and AI to some of the most difficult technical challenges in our mission. You will shape and lead the strategy for the function, develop its people and technical leaders, and ensure ML expertise is deeply integrated into Thorn’s products, technical innovation, and broader Build strategy.

You will lead an established core of passionate ML engineers with deep technical and mission expertise, while also having the opportunity to grow the team and shape the capabilities Thorn will need next. This role requires an exceptional people leader who can earn trust, build on the strengths already present, recruit outstanding new talent, and help the team evolve as Thorn’s needs and technical opportunities change.

As a member of Build leadership, you will report to the CTO and partner closely with Engineering, Product, and other teams across the organization to align ML priorities and technical direction with Thorn’s broader strategy.

What You’ll Do

• Technical Strategy and Innovation
  • Shape and lead Thorn’s Machine Learning and AI strategy in partnership with Build leadership, Product, and cross-functional stakeholders.
  • Identify promising ML and AI technologies and approaches, translating research and experimentation into recommendations.
  • Support Thorn’s Technical Innovation Roadmap through exploration, prototyping, de-risking, and validation of new technical capabilities.
  • Ensure ML systems and practices meet Thorn’s expectations for privacy, security, responsible AI, regulatory compliance, reliability, and operational excellence.
  • Partner closely with the Business Development and Strategic Impact (BDSI) team to inform Thorn’s technical research roadmap.
• Develop an Exceptional ML Team
  • Build on the strengths of an established, highly skilled Machine Learning team.
  • Recruit, develop, empower, and retain exceptional ML talent.
  • Lead, coach, and develop technical leaders and individual contributors.
  • Earn trust through curiosity, consistency, transparency, active listening, and strong follow-through.
  • Foster psychological safety alongside high expectations, healthy disagreement, technical excellence, continuous learning, and accountability.
  • Set clear expectations and provide timely, candid feedback.
  • Build leadership capacity throughout the team.
  • Partner with People & Culture on hiring, onboarding, development, performance management, and succession planning.
• One Build Collaboration
  • Build deep partnerships across Machine Learning, Engineering, Product, BDSI, and other teams.
  • Partner closely with Engineering leadership and teams to ensure ML capabilities are designed, built, deployed, and operated as reliable, scalable systems.
  • Help shape cross-Build technical decisions by bringing ML expertise and perspective.
  • Partner with Product, Engineering, BDSI, and customer-facing teams to ensure customer and ecosystem learning informs ML priorities.
• Execution and Organizational Leadership
  • Establish clear priorities, expectations, and operating rhythms.
  • Ensure sustainable ML development and operational practices.
  • Empower technical leaders and senior individual contributors to own day-to-day execution.
  • Partner with Finance and Build leadership on responsible resource allocation.
  • Identify organizational or technical constraints early and make clear tradeoffs.
  • Serve as a member of Build’s leadership team.
  • Represent Thorn’s ML work externally.

Qualifications

• Significant experience leading ML, AI, Data Science, or related technical teams.
• Strong technical judgment across modern ML and AI.
• Deep understanding of AI/ML applications, content detection technologies, and software development.
• Experience developing and operating ML capabilities with appropriate attention to reliability, evaluation, monitoring, privacy, security, and responsible AI.

Requirements

• Proven ability to lead, develop, and strengthen high-performing technical teams.
• Experience coaching technical leaders and individual contributors.
• Ability to earn trust with an established team and thoughtfully evolve culture.
• Track record of strong collaboration with Engineering, Product, Research/BDSI, and other cross-functional partners.
• Skilled at navigating complex stakeholder environments.

Leadership

• Ability to influence, drive change, and solve complex problems calmly and strategically.
• Strong communication skills.
• Lead with empathy, humility, honesty, clarity, and a trauma-informed approach.
• Build relationships based on trust, transparency, accountability, and follow-through.
• Commitment to putting the children we serve at the center of everything you do.

Compensation and Benefits

• A reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role is $188,000 - $302,450/year.
• Our remote-first work model is structured around working from home most of the time, with occasional travel for company-wide gatherings and team-building events.
• We value our people and offer employees a broad range of benefits.