GM, Rylo Research

As GM of Rylo Research, you'll lead the team building the future of AI-powered sign language translation. You'll report directly to the CEO and CTO, and you'll own delivery for a research org whose output will shape how Deaf people communicate with the hearing world. You’ll be in charge of the operational and product leadership of one of the most consequential AI research efforts we know of.

The Difference You Will Make

You think about how research translates into a set of products that real people use. Sign language is a cultural language, and sign language translation is a cultural bridge people have waited a lifetime for. That context shapes every decision you make about scope, priority, and what "done" means.

You ship through systems: A single research sprint hitting its date is table stakes. You build the operating system: the planning cadence, the scope discipline, the milestone hygiene, the partnership pipeline, making sure each quarter is stronger than the one before. You know that research teams die from drift, not from missed deadlines, and you build the rails that keep them moving.

You are AI-native: You worked with and around AI before it became a hype term. You understand concepts fully, you read papers, and are up on the latest and greatest. You know which outputs to trust, which to interrogate, and how to push tools to meet your standard.

You are obsessed with the number behind the number: You don't accept "research is on track" at face value. You go one level deeper. Then one more. You know that a model hitting a benchmark means nothing if the user study shows nobody can read its output. You define your own success criteria. You pressure-test conclusions before they reach users. When the research signal says one thing and your product instinct says another, you design the experiment that resolves it. And you’re not shy of changing course and declaring sunk cost.

You are technically fluent: You have a research or strong engineering background and you can sit in a model review without translation. You know the difference between a loss curve that is plateauing and one that is broken. You can read a paper, push back on a methodology, and spot when an eval is measuring the wrong thing. You have worked alongside researchers and engineers closely enough to scope an experiment, flag a measurement gap, and tell the difference between "we need more compute" and "we need a different idea."

You partner without ego: You’ll work closely with our Head of Research who owns the scientific direction - what we explore and how. You own delivery, people, and pace. Scope is decided together. You know that the best version of this role is one where the team can ship, and you build the structure that makes it possible. You are the team manager.

On a day to day, you will:

Translate research goals into realistic milestones and drive the team to hit them. Surface risk early, unblock daily, and always know the state of every workstream.
Run the planning cycle: Drafts, reviews, finalization. You’ll plan for multiple research outcomes (everything works, partial, nothing works) with a credible product path for each.
Own scope. Decide what we say yes and no to. Bring company priorities back into the team's plan and represent Rylo Research stakeholders.
Manage people. 1:1s, performance, career development, and team health for the research team.
Consider partnerships, creative data collection streams, and unique business and marketing opportunities.
Drive publication cadence: User studies, blog posts, research papers. You own the calendar, push for drafts, and unblock writing.
Partner with the necessary stakeholders on Legal matters, AI safety, marketing, and finance on the cross-functional surface area research generates.

Requirements:

5+ years in product management, technical program management, or engineering leadership, at least some of it leading AI or ML teams.
A research or hands-on engineering background. A PhD is not required, but you need to hold your own in a technical conversation about models, evaluations, and experiments.
Track record of shipping AI products or research outputs on a real cadence with milestones, papers, demos, partnership integrations, or real product releases.
Demonstrated experience managing engineers or researchers.
Experience working with various stakeholders, including non-technical ones.
Fluency with AI tools (more than using ChatGPT or Claude Code)
Bias toward action and an entrepreneurial startup mindset. You are comfortable setting your own path when the org chart is thin and the path is unclear.

Benefits:

Work on a fulfilling life-changing product (Literally)

️ Join as a key player at an early stage, and receive generous options

Unlimited time off and sick days

‍ ️ Annual company get-together

Bring your pet to work

About us:

Rylo is the communication engine for people who are Deaf or hard of hearing. Communication belongs to everyone, and we strongly believe that no moment should go missing.

We work alongside the community. We know the barriers, and we're here to tear them down. Our tools are built for individuals and the businesses that serve them.

Rylo is backed by investors who believe in the work we do: General Catalyst, Canaan, Comcast, Vertex, Precursor,Contour, Cardumen, Techstars, and more.