Medicinal Chemistry Strategy Advisor

Role Description The Member of Advisory Board - Chemistry will provide strategic and scientific guidance on chemistry-related aspects of Akttyva Therapeutics’ discovery and development programs.

Seeking an experienced medicinal chemistry leader who has successfully advanced multiple small-molecule programs from hit identification through lead optimization to IND candidate selection. The ideal candidate has deep expertise in structure-based drug design, multiparameter optimization (potency, selectivity, ADME, PK, and safety), and AI-enabled Design–Make–Test–Analyze workflows. Experience contributing to composition-of-matter patent strategy, and collaborating with CROs and internal experimental and computational chemistry team is preferred.

The advisor will provide strategic input into chemistry strategy across Akttyva's AI-driven discovery platform, accelerating the progression of novel first-in-class therapeutics.

Key skills: structure-guided design, SAR, lead optimization, protein-ligand interaction, kinase inhibitor development, familiarity with computational chemistry models and iteration cycles.

Qualifications

• Strong background in medicinal chemistry, synthetic organic chemistry, or related discipline, with experience in small-molecule drug discovery.
• Research and Analytical
  
  Skills:
  
  Demonstrated ability to interpret complex experimental and computational data, guide hypothesis-driven research, and assess scientific risk.
• Finance and Fundraising:
  Familiarity with budgeting for R&D activities, evaluating project financials, and supporting fundraising efforts or grant strategies.
• Prior experience serving on scientific advisory boards or providing strategic consulting to early-stage biotech or pharmaceutical companies is highly desirable.
• Excellent communication skills, including clear written and verbal articulation of scientific and strategic recommendations to multidisciplinary teams.
• Advanced degree (PhD or equivalent) in Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, or a closely related field preferred.
• Ability to collaborate effectively and commit to monthly 1-2 hr advisory meetings and timely feedback on program materials.