Founders' Associate, Office of the CEO

Atomic-Machines; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 175,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Benefits

Job summary

Atomic Machines in Santa Clara is seeking a sharp, proactive partner to support the CEO and Head of Strategic Growth. This role is not traditional; you own projects end to end, think clearly, and help scale breakthrough technology to manufacturing.

You will be based in our Santa Clara office with occasional travel to Emeryville, coordinating the CEO's operating rhythm and cross‑team efforts while protecting time and ensuring smooth communications.

Qualifications

• Must think clearly and write clearly to communicate decisions.
• Accurate, detail-oriented with a system for verification.
• Ability to form recommendations with options and viewpoints.
• Work well with minimal direction, mostly in writing.

Responsibilities

• Own the CEO's operating rhythm: trackers, follow-ups, action items, and briefs.
• Draft narratives and communications in the CEO's voice for boards, investors, customers, and candidates.
• Identify issues, raise them, and propose fixes across cross-functional teams.
• Protect the founders' time and focus by managing calendars, travel, and sensitive information.

Skills

Clear thinking

Strong writing

Attention to detail

Decision making

AI fluency

Curiosity about technology

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Atomic Machines is building the Matter Compiler™, the first in a new class of AI-native, all-digital manufacturing systems that build working machines directly from code. The Matter Compiler (MC) is aimed at micro-machines: motors and gears the size of a grain of sand, robots small enough to work inside the body, cooling built directly into the chips that run AI, and the many devices like them that have been waiting on a way to build them. Its first product is PrimeSwitch™, an electromechanical power relay the size of a button battery that carries 150 amps continuous current and opens in 50 microseconds, about a thousand times faster than a conventional contactor. Founded by Jeff Holden — serial entrepreneur, ex-Amazon SVP and Uber’s first Chief Product Officer — the company has raised $250 million to date.

Atomic Machines is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with offices in Emeryville and Santa Clara.

About the role

This is not a traditional support role. Our founders need a sharp, low-ego partner who multiplies their impact: someone who thinks clearly, writes clearly, owns projects end to end, and keeps their time focused where their time is needed most. You’ll spend most of your time supporting our CEO, and the rest supporting our Head of Strategic Growth.

Our mission requires solving problems no one has solved and building capabilities that don’t yet exist. That means operating differently from organizations built to optimize known systems, and it means no role here is beneath anyone. If you have strong judgment and do your best work when you’re trusted with a problem and given room to solve it, this role is for you.

You will have a front-row seat to how a Physical AI company scales from breakthrough technology to commercial manufacturing, and you will be expected to contribute to it, not just observe it.

This role is based in our Santa Clara office with the occasional travel to Emeryville (preferred).

What you’ll do

Most of this role is ownership work. The rest is keeping the founders’ time, travel, and commitments running without friction.

Own the CEO's operating rhythm

• Run the trackers, follow-ups, and action items that come out of leadership meetings, and close the loop until each one is done
• Prepare the briefings and pre-reads that let Jeff walk into board, investor, customer, and candidate conversations ready
• Turn long documents and discussions into short, accurate summaries with a clear recommendation

Own projects

• Take on cross-company projects from the founders’ plate and drive them to completion across teams that don't report to you
• Draft narratives, memos, and communications in Jeff's voice, at a standard he would sign
• Spot what is broken or drifting, raise it directly, and propose a fix

Protect the founders’ time and focus

• Manage the founders’ calendar, priorities, and incoming requests with sharp judgment about what needs him and what doesn't
• Coordinate domestic and international travel and logistics so he never has to think about them
• Be a trusted point of contact for our team, investors, customers, and partners
• Handle highly sensitive information with complete discretion

Who we're looking for

• You think clearly and write clearly. You lead with the answer. You can read a 20-page technical narrative and tell someone the decision in three sentences.
• You are accurate. You check the details that can't be wrong, and you have a system for it.
• You form a recommendation. When you bring a problem, you bring options and a point of view, not just a question.
• You work well with minimal direction. You know when to decide, when to ask, and when to elevate, and you're comfortable working mostly in writing.
• You seek truth. You raise bad news early and push back respectfully when the logic doesn't hold.
• You use AI as a force multiplier. You can describe specific tools and workflows you use today and where they fall short.
• You're curious about how things work. You don't need a hardware background, but you want to understand the technology, the customers, and the business.
• You see your work through. You have a track record of staying in roles long enough to see your work through.
• Education: Bachelor's degree required

The compensation for this position also includes equity and benefits.

Salary Range

$175,000 - $220,000 USD

Atomic Machines is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity and does not discriminate based on characteristics protected by applicable law. We are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including for individuals with disabilities. To request an accommodation, contact [e-mail] .To help our recruiting team manage application volume and respond to candidates more efficiently, Atomic Machines may use AI-assisted tools.