Head of Generative AI Initiatives (BOSTON)

Company: Takeda Pharmaceutical
Location: Boston
Posted on: March 25, 2026

Job Description:

By clicking the “Apply” button, I understand that my employment application process with Takeda will commence and that the information I provide in my application will be processed in line with Takeda’s Privacy Notice and Terms of Use. I further attest that all information I submit in my employment application is true to the best of my knowledge. Job Description We are inviting individuals with deep knowledge of machine learning and artificial intelligence with extensive experience in Generative AI to join us in the ShinrAI Center for AI/ML at Takeda, based in Cambridge, MA. At the ShinrAI Center, we’re a team of scientists, engineers, machine learning experts and more, working together to advance the application of artificial intelligence in developing innovative medicine for patients. We like to solve problems, take initiative, pitch in when needed, and enthusiastic for trying new things. We are looking for more curious thinkers who like to tackle challenging, real-world problems in a rewarding environment where your contributions are valued and have a direct impact. We're building a diverse team whose skills, experiences, and backgrounds complement one another. Extensive experience working in Pharma or Biotech is optional. A strong curiosity for a deeper understanding of human health and disease to deliver innovative medicine for patients is a must. ACCOUNTABILITIES: - Partners with data science teams, domain experts, and business units to identify and prioritize opportunities to leverage machine learning and particularly generative AI and agentic AI to drive decision making and automation across all levels of the R&D organization - Translate business needs into clearly scoped machine learning projects, and take a hands-on approach to steer solution design and implementation - Educate, demonstrate, guide, and enable the application of machine learning and particularly generative AI in various pharmaceutical R&D operations and scientific domains - Identify, monitor, and validate relevant external AI/ML developments, cultivate relationships with external domain experts and partners, and report and present emerging novel developments within the organization to further innovation and shape long-term strategy and governance. - Proactively build relationships across the company to inform your work and contribute to internal and external collaborations, through involvement in working groups, and the writing of insightful, engaging, and actionable opinion pieces that are easily digestible by internal decision makers and stakeholders. - Be the leading voice for building common capability and approaches and for adopting best practices - Work in collaboration with our Ethics and Governance teams to ensure our AI/ML applications are developed ethically and provide broad benefits to our patients and business - Help talented, driven, enthusiastic AI/ML engineers and data scientists across the company grow professionally - Measure, document, and communicate impacts of the Center’s efforts EDUCATION, BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS: - A track record of partnering cross-functionally with a wide range of stakeholders and cross-functional teams to develop and deploy novel data solutions in production environments - Demonstrated passion for making complex technology more accessible and the ability to communicate complex technical topics simply and convincingly to a wide range of audiences - Demonstrated ability in translating big picture business and product ideas into micro use cases and has a strong focus on solving core problems to deliver simple solutions - Experience recognizing and communicating the implications of emerging technologies - Excellent communication, prioritization, and interpersonal skills, with a high level of attention to detail - An advanced degree (M.S., PhD.) in mathematics, applied statistics, computer science, machine learning or similar. With 8 years of experience architecting, building, launching, and maintaining end-to-end ML systems from whiteboard to production at scale across a range of models and platforms, such as: Experience building agentic and LLM based solutions. Experience in fine tuning large language models for domain specific applications. Experience in designing transfer learning strategy to enable learning from small datasets. Demonstrated ability and authoritative knowledge in a variety of AI/ML problems and domains, with depth in at least two (computer vision, natural language processing, geometric deep learning, timeseries, reinforcement learning, multimodal learning, etc.). Solid understanding of deep learning model architectures (C/RNN, attention/memory, autoregressive, etc.) and extensions (Transformer, LSTM, Autoencoders, etc.) as well as traditional ML models (k-means, KNN, decision trees, SVM, Bayesian/graphical models, Gaussian process, etc.) and their real-world advantages and drawbacks. Experience tuning, validating, optimizing, visualizing, and debugging these models in applied settings. Familiarity with ML Ops concepts related to testing, retraining, and monitoring models in production. Experience in delivering custom software solutions for complex R&D needs, leveraging both internal and external resources. Expertise in implementing DevOps practices to drive efficient development-to-operations transitions and ensure automation across workflows. Experience in configuring and working in different coding environments (local, notebooks, containers) and using standard software engineering workflows (testing, code management/Git, CI/CD) - An enthusiasm to ask questions and try and learn new things is essential - Entrepreneurial experience is desirable. - Experience in life sciences and healthcare and experience in a complex global organization is a plus Takeda Compensation and Benefits Summary We understand compensation is an important factor as you consider the next step in your career. We are committed to equitable pay for all employees, and we strive to be more transparent with our pay practices. For Location: Boston, MA U.S. Base Salary Range: $174,500.00 - $274,230.00 The estimated salary range reflects an anticipated range for this position. The actual base salary offered may depend on a variety of factors, including the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, specific and unique skills, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job. The actual base salary offered will be in accordance with state or local minimum wage requirements for the job location. U.S. based employees may be eligible for short-term and/ or long-term incentives. U.S. based employees may be eligible to participate in medical, dental, vision insurance, a 401(k) plan and company match, short-term and long-term disability coverage, basic life insurance, a tuition reimbursement program, paid volunteer time off, company holidays, and well-being benefits, among others. U.S. based employees are also eligible to receive, per calendar year, up to 80 hours of sick time, and new hires are eligible to accrue up to 120 hours of paid vacation. EEO Statement Takeda is proud in its commitment to creating a diverse workforce and providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, parental status, national origin, age, disability, citizenship status, genetic information or characteristics, marital status, status as a Vietnam era veteran, special disabled veteran, or other protected veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws, and any other characteristic protected by law. Locations Boston, MA Worker Type Employee Worker Sub-Type Regular Time Type Full time Job Exempt Yes It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Keywords: Takeda Pharmaceutical, Providence , Head of Generative AI Initiatives (BOSTON), IT / Software / Systems , Boston, Rhode Island