Chief Design Officer

About Us

Generative Bionics is a deep-tech company building humanoid robot platforms to deploy human-centered Physical AI. We design intelligent, capable machines that work alongside people in real-world environments, developed in Genoa, Italy. Generative Bionics is building a new category at the intersection of robotics, and generative AI. We are not designing machines that replace people, we are shaping a new paradigm in which human beings remain the protagonists. Every system we create starts and ends with the human experience, not only for direct users, but for every person who will share space, interact with, or simply be in the presence of our humanoid platforms. We believe that deep tech will live or die by its form. The next decade will not be decided by faster models alone, but by how those models inhabit our world, through movement, sound, surface, and the subtle cues that tell people: you are safe here. Form is the new safety. Grace is the new interface.

Role

We are seeking a Chief Design Officer (CDO) to architect the entire humanoid experience, the physical form, the quality of movement, the voice, the sound, the surfaces, and the interpersonal choreography that makes interaction with our systems feel natural, pleasant, and deeply respectful of human presence. This is not a traditional industrial-design or UX position. We are looking for the person who will lead what we consider an emerging professional discipline: embodied UX, the design of intelligence as it steps into the physical world and becomes part of human choreography. The CDO will sit at the intersection of three critical organizational axes: engineering, to ensure design intent survives from concept through production; Business Intelligence, to ground every design decision in market signals, use‑case data, and stakeholder feedback; and the executive leadership team, to shape company strategy from the perspective of human experience.

Responsibilities

• Physical Design Language – Define the humanoid's form factor, materials, surfaces, textures, and proportions. Material is meaning, a care robot with textile sleeves feels safer to touch; a robot in a tailored uniform signals competence. Surface is the first line of emotional communication.
• Movement & Trajectory Design – Craft the kinematics of approach, gesture, and spatial navigation. Every trajectory must be legible, communicating intention before action, following the smooth, natural patterns described by the minimum‑jerk model that our brains instinctively read as graceful and safe. Design motion as social syntax.
• Voice & Sound Design – Shape the vocal identity, conversational cadence, ambient sounds, and silence patterns. Embrace the insight that small imperfections, a breath, a rhythm slightly off, signal humanity far better than synthetic perfection. Design “earcons” (auditory icons of intention) – a soft chime that says I'm behind you, a gentle tone that signals object delivered.
• Proxemics & Perceptual Design – Define how the humanoid manages distance, speed, and gentleness in relation to human bodies, drawing on standards like ISO 13482 and ISO/TS 15066, but going beyond compliance to design comfort as an experience.
• Stakeholder Experience Architecture – Co‑create the humanoid experience with use‑case stakeholders, healthcare professionals, caregivers, patients, families, operators, bystanders, ensuring that every person in the ecosystem feels considered, not only the direct user.
• Engineering Interface – Work hand‑in‑hand with the robotics and AI engineering teams to ensure that design specifications, from trajectory profiles to material choices to sound signatures, are technically feasible and faithfully implemented at every stage of development.
• Business Intelligence Coordination – Partner closely with the BI function to translate market data, user research, competitive analysis, and use‑case intelligence into design priorities. Ensure that design decisions are informed by evidence, not assumption, and that field feedback loops continuously into the design process.
• Design Philosophy & Standards – Codify and evangelize the Generative Bionics design philosophy, rooted in the conviction that beauty and utility are not enemies, that grace is legibility at the speed of emotion, and that the task is not to make machines that imitate life, but machines that move beautifully within it.

Requirements

• You bring 10+ years of international experience leading complex, multidisciplinary design programs, spanning robotics, automotive, medical devices, consumer electronics, spatial/experiential design, or human‑robot interaction.
• You have directed projects where physical design, interaction design, sound/voice design, material selection, and human factors were evaluated together as a unified experience, not as separate workstreams.
• You have a deep working knowledge of proxemics, embodied cognition, and non‑verbal communication, and you translate that knowledge into actionable design specifications.
• You think beyond the end‑user. You design for ecosystems of people, direct users, bystanders, caregivers, families, communities.
• You are as comfortable reading business intelligence dashboards and market data as you are reviewing motion profiles and material samples. You believe design must be grounded in evidence.
• You have experience operating across engineering and business functions in complex organizations, bridging technical feasibility with strategic direction.
• You are comfortable leading in ambiguity, building new design frameworks from scratch, and working across cultures and disciplines.
• You are fluent in English; additional languages are a plus.
• You hold a degree in Industrial Design, Interaction Design, Human Factors, Architecture, or a related field. Advanced degrees or research in human‑robot interaction, cognitive science, embodied intelligence, or related disciplines are highly valued.
• Availability to travel nationally and internationally is expected.

We Offer

• A founding‑level executive role in a venture defining a new category in humanoid systems.
• The opportunity to shape not just a product, but a design philosophy for an entire emerging industry, what we call the era of designed intelligence.
• Long‑term incentive structures specifically designed to build a deep, lasting bond between you and the company and retention mechanisms aligned with the venture's growth trajectory.
• A company culture that values the long arc of innovation, where teams are built for endurance, not just speed, and where the journey from idea to impact is treated as a human relay that requires stamina, alignment, and trust.
• International scope and visibility within a mission‑driven team.

Disclaimer

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We evaluate all qualified applicants solely on the basis of merit and business needs, without distinction or discrimination based on gender, race, color, ethnic or social origin, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.