Creative Director

Profluent is the frontier AI lab for biology. Profluent builds powerful foundation models for all of life's molecules, unlocking solutions that transform medicine, agriculture, and beyond. Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Emeryville, CA, Profluent is backed by leading investors including Altimeter Capital, Bezos Expeditions, Spark Capital, Insight Partners, Air Street Capital, AIX Ventures, and Convergent Ventures and has raised over $150M to date.

The Role

We're looking for a Creative Director to own Profluent's creative function and define how the company looks, feels, and shows up in the world. You'll own the creative process end to end - from concept through published work and balance scientific accuracy, visual craft, and clarity to make works that delight, inspire, and capture attention. This role works in close partnership with the Head of Comms & Brand and the CEO to make final creative decisions.

This is a player-coach role. Today you'll work with the existing team to make much of the work yourself,  including video, design, web, social, events, and over time you'll build and lead a small creative team and manage a creative budget within the Comms & Brand function. On a day to day basis, you'll work closely with the Head of Comms & Brand as well as contractors (e.g. videographers, photographers, illustrators), and our leadership and scientists to turn frontier science into work that resonates with people.

A few rules guide our team:

• Don't be boring. Create things that delight and inspire people
• Avoid jargon. Create content, art, and objects that communicate with people like they're people

If those guiding principles match your own ethos and furthering Profluent’s brand sounds like a fun challenge, please apply!

Responsibilities

• Translate Profluent's frontier science into a brand and public presence that establishes us as the frontier AI lab for biology 
• Own the creative process across every brand surface, including driving projects from concept to finished work, balancing tradeoffs, and making final decisions with the Head of Comms & Brand and the CEO
• Own and evolve Profluent's visual identity system including typography, color, imagery, motion, and other visual design standards to cement our brand as a frontier AI lab
• Own the creative budget within the Comms & Brand function and help build the creative function over time, hiring and leading designers, producers, and contractors as the team grows
• Manage vendors and contractors (videographers, designers, agencies) as extensions of the team
• Art direct and produce imagery including photography and illustrations and video including podcast episodes, videos for model/capability releases, social clips, videos for major announcements, and more
• Design decks, white papers, and launch assets that hold up in front of a technical audience 
• Lead Profluent’s website through both cosmetic and structural changes, working with design and dev contractors as well as making edits to the website directly
• Create content for social channels as well as executive comms, shipping quickly while maintaining high quality
• Define and shape our presence at conferences (e.g. NeurIPS, ICML, JPM, BIO) and Profluent-owned events 
• Build and expand Profluent’s brand and design systems (e.g. templates, asset libraries, SOPs) that let our small team punch well above its weight

Qualifications

• 10-12 years in brand and creative roles
• A track record of leading creative as a Creative Director or equivalent, spanning both making and directing content across various mediums
• A portfolio demonstrating creative leadership and includes motion and video, editorial, digital, environmental/event design, and physical merch The ability to translate dense technical material into clear, human, non-hype work
• A background in bio, AI, or deep tech 
• Fluency in modern design tools including Figma, Descript/a video editor of your choice, Webflow, Adobe suite as well as the verve and ability to learn new design tools and techniques as needs arise
• Fluency in project management software including Slack, Google Workspace, Notion, and Airtable
• Experience owning a budget and managing people or external teams
• A bias toward shipping: the ideal candidate ensures the work is published, not just handed off
• Taste, judgment, and the confidence to set direction and hold a point of view with founders and scientists in the room

Preferences

• Has worked at the intersection of hard science, design, and culture
• Has worked in high-growth startups
• Experience in service-based industries

What We Offer

• High-growth opportunity with meaningful impact on the future of protein design
• Competitive compensation package with equity participation
• 401(k) with a strong employer match
• Comprehensive benefits including health/dental/vision insurance
• Generous PTO policy and commitment to work-life balance
• Professional development opportunities in a cutting-edge field at the intersection of AI and biology

Profluent Bio, Inc is an equal opportunity employer promoting diversity and inclusion in the workspace. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical conditions, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity and gender expression), sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding), genetic information, taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, or any other basis protected by law.

Work Authorization Requirement

Applicants must have ongoing work authorization in the United States that does not require employer sponsorship. Sponsorship will not be provided now or at any time in the future for this position.

Employment Eligibility Verification

Legal authorization to work in the United States is required. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired must verify their identity and work eligibility and complete the required employment verification form upon hire.

Hiring Salary Range

$157,000—$207,000 USD

NOTICE TO STAFFING AND SEARCH FIRMS: Profluent does not accept unsolicited candidate submissions. We ask that agencies refrain from sending resumes to our careers inbox, hiring managers, or any Profluent employee. Any resume submitted without a signed agreement and an active search request from our Talent team will be treated as the property of Profluent, and no placement fee will be owed.