European Business Development Lead

Aether Bio, Inc.; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 108,000 - 211,000; Full time

Job summary

Aether Biomachines is seeking an experienced EU Business Development Lead to expand our presence in the European aerospace, defense, and industrial ecosystems. This role blends strategic partnerships with deep technical engagement and long-cycle sales in a regulated environment.

You will navigate complex procurement, build trusted relationships with conservative buyers, and lead multi-year collaborations across R&D, materials, and product teams.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in business development, application development, strategic partnerships, or commercial roles in the 3D printing materials space selling into military OEMs and defense primes.
• Demonstrated success in complex, multi-stakeholder technical sales (12–36+ month cycles).
• Strong familiarity with the EU military/defense procurement and supplier ecosystem.
• Ability to credibly engage with engineering teams, R&D leadership, CTO offices, and technical program managers.
• Proven ability to build a market from ground zero and operate with high autonomy.
• Experience operating in regulated or security-conscious environments with high expectations around rigor, documentation, and risk mitigation.

Responsibilities

• Market Development across multiple markets.
• Develop a strategic plan to expand presence in European military/defense, transportation and industrial markets.
• Map the EU ecosystem: primes, Tier 1/Tier 2 suppliers, additive manufacturing OEMs, service bureaus, research agencies, defense innovation units, industrial conglomerates.
• Identify early commercial pathways where Aether’s materials capabilities drive step-change performance.
• Lead partner engagements across R&D, advanced materials groups, CTO offices, innovation labs, and engineering teams.
• Navigate long procurement cycles, qualification processes, and multi-layered stakeholder environments.
• Structure collaborations, pilot projects, PoCs, joint development agreements, and multi-year technical partnerships.
• Work closely with scientists to define technical workstreams and project scopes.
• Translate customer engineering challenges into internal problem statements.
• Assess feasibility, risks, and potential paths from prototype → qualification → deployment.
• Engage with EU and national agencies (e.g. ESA, DLR, CNES, ONERA, UK DSTL, Fraunhofer, etc.) to identify strategic partnership opportunities.
• Represent Aether in dual-use and advanced materials consortiums and industry events.
• Track funding mechanisms, pilot programs, and government-backed innovation pathways.
• Build and manage a robust pipeline across priority verticals.
• Provide structured feedback to leadership to guide the product development roadmap and technical investment areas.
• Work collaboratively with the BD and Product Development Teams.

Skills

Strategic partnerships

Complex technical sales

New market development

Regulated environments

Job description

Engineering the Future of Protein Innovation & Materials Science

Aether Biomachines is building the future of protein engineering with AI. Our proprietary Protein Function Model unlocks entirely new classes of proteins that power breakthrough applications - from recycling plastics and breaking down “forever chemicals” to creating next-generation materials that show advantages versus other 3D printing materials on the market. With real-world impact across aerospace, defense, clean energy, and beyond, Aether is where cutting-edge science meets world-changing opportunity. We are a ~30 person Series A company based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Mission

We’re hiring an experienced, strategic EU Business Development Lead to build Aether’s presence in the FDM 3D printing and Advanced Materials space across the European aerospace, defense, and industrial ecosystem. This is our first dedicated EU commercial hire.

You will develop partnerships and applications with companies operating in:

• Military/Defense & dual-use technologies

• Advanced manufacturing (additive manufacturing, high-performance materials, precision engineering)

• Transportation

• Industrial and specialty chemicals

• Government innovation bodies and research institutes (e.g., DLR, Fraunhofer, ESA, ONERA)

Your role is a mix of creating strategic partnerships, deep technical engagement, and long-cycle relationship building in highly regulated, engineering-led environments.

This is a high-autonomy, high-judgment role requiring someone who has already navigated complex industrial procurement cycles and knows how to build trust with conservative technical buyers.

Core Responsibilities

Market Development across multiple markets

• Develop a strategic plan to expand Aether’s presence in European military/defense, transportation and industrial markets.

• Map the EU ecosystem: primes, Tier 1/Tier 2 suppliers, additive manufacturing OEMs, service bureaus, research agencies, defense innovation units, industrial conglomerates.

• Identify early commercial pathways where Aether’s materials capabilities drive step-change performance.

Strategic Partnerships & Complex Technical Sales

• Lead partner engagements across R&D, advanced materials groups, CTO offices, innovation labs, and engineering teams.

• Navigate long procurement cycles, qualification processes, and multi-layered stakeholder environments.

• Structure collaborations, pilot projects, PoCs, joint development agreements, and multi-year technical partnerships.

Technical Scoping & Solution Framing

• Work closely with Aether’s scientists to define technical workstreams and project scopes.

• Translate customer engineering challenges into internal problem statements.

• Assess feasibility, risks, and potential paths from prototype > qualification > deployment.

Government & Ecosystem Engagement

• Engage with EU and national agencies (e.g. ESA, DLR, CNES, ONERA, UK DSTL, Fraunhofer, etc.) to identify strategic partnership opportunities.

• Represent Aether in dual-use and advanced materials consortiums and industry events.

• Track funding mechanisms, pilot programs, and government-backed innovation pathways.

Pipeline Ownership & Internal Alignment

• Build and manage a robust pipeline across priority verticals.

• Provide structured feedback to leadership to guide the product development roadmap and technical investment areas.

• Work collaboratively with the BD and Product Development Teams

Preferred Qualifications

• 7+ years in business development, application development, strategic partnerships, or commercial roles in the 3D printing materials space selling into:

  • Military OEMs and tier one suppliers

  • Defense primes or subcontractors

  • Transportation OEMs and tier one suppliers

  • Industrial applications

  • The 3D printing ecosystem - Printer OEMs, service bureaus, etc

• Demonstrated success in complex, multi-stakeholder technical sales (12-36+ month cycles).

• Strong familiarity with the EU military/defense procurement and supplier ecosystem.

• Ability to credibly engage with engineering teams, R&D leadership, CTO offices, and technical program managers.

• Proven ability to build a market from ground zero and operate with high autonomy.

• Experience operating in regulated or security-conscious environments with high expectations around rigor, documentation, and risk mitigation.

Exceptional Candidates might have

• Background in materials science, chemical engineering, industrial biotech, or related applied sciences (degree helpful but not required).

• Experience with EU government, military, R&D or innovation programs (Horizon, ESA, DLR, BMVg/AID, etc.).

• Multilingual (English, German, French, Dutch, or Nordic languages).

• Experience at deeptech startups or dual-use technology companies.

Note

Aether is committed to building an inclusive and diverse workplace. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, gender identity or expression, marital or civil-partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation. All employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit, and business needs.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates throughout the recruitment process. If you require any adjustments to participate fully in interviews or assessments, please let us know and we will work with you to support your needs.

Any personal data you submit will be processed by Aether in accordance with applicable data protection laws. Your information will be used solely for recruitment purposes and will not be shared outside Aether without your consent.

We aim to ensure a fair and respectful hiring experience. If you have concerns about the recruitment process or require additional support, please reach out to our team.

The pay range for this role is €95,000 - €125,000 for base salary and €140,000 - €185,000 on target earnings with final compensation based on skills and experience.