Sr. Manager of AI/ ML & Sensors (eXpedite)

Senior Manager, AI/Machine Learning & Sensors Join Evolv as Senior Manager of AI/Machine Learning & Sensors for Expedite, our X-ray screening product. You will lead a multidisciplinary team of scientists and engineers developing state-of-the-art computer vision and deep learning solutions for X-ray imaging that operate in real-time on constrained hardware platforms. This role blends deep technical expertise-on par with our most senior individual contributors-with strong people leadership, stakeholder management, and project management skills. You will own delivery of the Expedite ML roadmap end-to-end: setting technical direction, running execution, developing your team, and representing the program in stakeholder and executive forums. Your leadership will push the boundaries of AI-powered physical security screening and ensure Evolv remains at the forefront of technological advancements in the industry. Success in the Role: What are performance outcomes over the first 6-12 months you will work toward completing? In the first 30 days, you will: - Explore Evolv's sensors, algorithms, and development processes, with a focus on the Expedite X-ray product architecture and data pipeline. - Meet 1:1 with every member of the Expedite team of scientists and engineers to understand strengths, development goals, and current workstreams. - Work to understand real-time processing, hardware limitations, and environmental constraints for X-ray screening in the Evolv product portfolio. - Review the existing Expedite roadmap, model performance metrics, and delivery processes, and identify areas for improvement and deliver key milestones - Build a stakeholder map across product, hardware, software engineering, regulatory, and customer-facing teams. Within the First Three Months: - Establish a predictable execution cadence for the Expedite team, including sprint planning, milestone tracking, and risk management. - Own and run recurring stakeholder meetings, providing clear status, trade-offs, and decision recommendations to product and executive stakeholders. - Work with the product team to gather requirements and translate these into derived requirements that guide and inform ML development efforts. - Provide hands-on technical guidance on X-ray computer vision and deep learning approaches, including model architecture and evaluation decisions. - Assess team structure and skills against the roadmap and propose a hiring and development plan. By the End of the First Year: - Deliver the major Expedite ML roadmap milestones on schedule, with production models deployed at the edge on resource-constrained hardware. - Build a high-performing, engaged team of scientists and engineers with clear career development paths, and successfully hire to plan. - Effectively communicate with senior leadership to provide insights that shape strategic decisions for the Expedite product line. - Execute the company's X-ray and sensor-driven AI strategy, aligning it with business objectives to drive growth and innovation. The Work: What type of work will you be doing? What assignments, requirements, or skills will you be performing on a regular basis? People Leadership & Team Management: - Manage, mentor, and grow a team of ML scientists and engineers working on the Expedite X-ray product. - Set clear goals and expectations, run regular 1:1s, deliver feedback, and own performance and career development for the team. - Recruit, interview, and onboard top ML and engineering talent. - Drive an innovation culture while maintaining a practical, delivery-oriented focus. Project & Stakeholder Management: - Own project planning and execution for Expedite ML workstreams: scoping, scheduling, resourcing, risk management, and delivery. - Prepare and lead stakeholder meetings with product, hardware, software engineering, regulatory, and executive audiences, communicating status, trade-offs, and recommendations clearly. - Coordinate cross-functional dependencies with product, hardware, software engineering, and SQA to integrate ML solutions into the Expedite platform. - Enable rapid development through prioritization, planning, and automation. - Engage in customer demonstrations and proof-of-concept exercises to quickly gather feedback and incorporate it into an iterative design and development process. Technical Leadership: - Set technical direction for X-ray computer vision and modern machine learning initiatives, including detection architectures and advanced AI/ML infrastructure and models to scale to current and future business use cases. - Guide the design of novel algorithms that leverage X-ray imagery, including approaches that combine and fuse multiple sensor inputs. - Recommend and implement best practices in model training, validation, and deployment for production edge systems. - Review technical designs and results, and stay hands-on enough to unblock the team and pressure-test key decisions. - Stay current with the latest ML developments and drive continuous improvement in X-ray sensing capabilities. - Inform AI and sensor initiatives at the executive level. Technical Expertise Required: Machine Learning & Computer Vision - PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Physics, or related field with 5+ years' experience in computer vision/deep learning, or MS with 10+ years' experience. - 3+ years of direct people management experience leading teams of scientists and/or engineers. - Proven experience delivering scalable production models, ideally on resource-constrained edge hardware. - Strong command of emerging tools and architectures in machine learning. - Experience with X-ray imaging, radiographic or other penetrating-sensor data (or closely related sensing modalities) strongly preferred. - Expertise in sensor fusion algorithms and multi-sensor systems. - Experience with TensorFlow, PyTorch, and other ML frameworks; strong programming skills in Python and C++. - Knowledge of hardware acceleration technologies (GPU, NPU and TPU). - Demonstrated project management skills (agile planning, milestone tracking, risk management) and excellent written and verbal communication for stakeholder and executive audiences. What is the leadership like for this role? What is the structure and culture of the team? You will join our R&D organization, reporting directly to the VP of ML and Sensors, and will directly manage the Expedite team of scientists and engineers. In this role, you will interface with cross-disciplinary teams of highly skilled and autonomous engineers with expertise in Electromagnetics, Computer Vision, and AI. Our R&D organization includes more than 100 dedicated developers, engineers, and managers-each bringing deep technical knowledge and a strong culture of collaboration and support. The team culture is one based on building trust, collaboration, on-going development through kindness, authenticity, courage, drive, and fun! Where is the role located? This role is based at our headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts. Due to the nature of our software-enabled hardware products, this position requires a minimum of 60% on-site work (3-days a week). Compensation and Transparency Statement: The base salary range for this full-time position is $187,000-$243,000. In addition to base salary, this role offers a competitive target bonus, equity, and a comprehensive benefits package. This range reflects our commitment to pay transparency and equity, in alignment with applicable state laws. Our compensation ranges are determined based on factors such as role, level, location, market benchmarks, and internal equity. The posted range represents the good-faith estimate of what we expect to pay for this role across U.S. locations. Actual compensation within the range will be based on the candidate's skills, experience, education, and geographic location. In accordance with state and local pay transparency laws-including those in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and others-we disclose salary ranges in all job postings and provide additional information upon request. During the hiring process, your recruiter will share: - The specific salary range for your preferred location - A general overview of our benefits and equity offerings - Insights into how compensation decisions are made, including factors that influence starting pay We are committed to fair pay practices, and we regularly review our compensation programs to ensure they are competitive, equitable, and aligned with our values. Benefits At Evolv, we're on a mission to help make public spaces safer through innovative security technology. So, we're looking for future teammates who embody our values, people who: - Do the right thing, always; - Put people first' - Own it; - Win together; and continue to - Be bold, stay curious. Our Benefits Include: - Equity as part of your total compensation package - Medical, dental, and vision insurance - Health Savings Account (HSA) - A 401(k) plan (and 2% company match) - Flexible Paid Time Off (PTO)- take the time you need to recharge, with manager approval and business needs in mind - Quarterly stipend for perks and benefits that matter most to you - Tuition reimbursement to support your ongoing learning and development - Subscription to Calm