Chief Scientist

About ReservoirReservoir is a new rural institution built around rugged physical AI and agricultural technology. It operates on-farm innovation hubs, where startups test, validate, and scale their technology alongside commercial growers. Around those sites, called Reservoir Farms, Reservoir convenes a technical community of founders, engineers, researchers, growers, and industry partners. Its partners include leading OEMs, technology companies, universities, and grower associations. Reservoir's affiliated fund, Reservoir VC, invests in early-stage physical AI and agricultural robotics. The throughline is technology as resilience, for farms and for the rural communities around them.The roleThe Chief Scientist leads Reservoir's technical work: evaluating new technologies, designing on-farm trials, and advising on emerging areas. They also represent Reservoir as a voice on where rugged physical AI and agricultural technology is heading. The role reports to Reservoir's CEO, Danny Bernstein. What you'll doEvaluate technology. Lead technical diligence on startups applying to Reservoir sites and on companies in the Reservoir VC pipeline. Set a clear, consistent evidence bar for go/no-go decisions.Design and validate trials. Own on-farm trial protocols across sites, spanning robotics, sensing, data, and biologicals. Produce results rigorous enough that growers and industry partners act on them.Build and integrate. Where the market doesn't have the right tool, prototype or integrate one. Help define a shared technology stack across Reservoir sites.Lead technically with partners. Serve as the senior technical peer to partner engineering and research teams, and scope joint programs.Shape what's next. Maintain a sharp point of view on emerging areas such as physical AI, specialty crop automation, biologicals, and water. Inform Reservoir's strategy and investment thesis.Represent Reservoir. Speak at conferences, publish, engage press, and anchor major grant and research proposals.Who you areYou hold a PhD in agricultural or biological engineering, plant science, robotics, or applied ML, or have equivalent depth.You have depth across agronomy, ag technology, sustainability, supply chains, and climate mitigation and adaptation. You can connect what happens in the field to its impact on the broader food system.You've already made the move to the private sector. You've founded or technically led an agtech company that shipped something growers use.You're fluent in both biology and machines, and can critique a trial design and a hardware spec in the same meeting.You're credible in a grower's field and in a research lab.You're entrepreneurial. You're comfortable in a lean organization and skilled at getting things built through partners.You have a track record of publishing and speaking.What success looks like in year oneA standard evaluation framework applied to every company on Reservoir sites.Published results from the first wave of trials.Technical leadership of at least one major partner program.Recognition as a go-to voice on agtech stages.Why this roleThis role offers a seat at the center of agricultural technology, with direct access to growers, startups, industry leaders, and investors. You'll have a real hand in deciding which technologies reach the field.