---
title: 'Member of Research Staff, Preclinical at Nudge'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/member-of-research-staff-preclinical-nudge-san-francisco-dtsdehta9a6g'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-04'
---

# Member of Research Staff, Preclinical at Nudge

- **Company:** Nudge
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Posted:** 2026-03-20
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-04
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/nudge/5c4d3ec3-908e-47a1-9e60-886bbb9154eb

## Job description

## About Nudge

At Nudge, our mission is to develop the best technology for interfacing with the brain to improve people's lives. We're starting with an approach that we believe can help the most people the fastest, and also allow us to learn as much about the brain as possible: developing a non-invasive, ultrasound-based device that can stimulate and image the brain at high resolution and depth. This is a vertically integrated effort building cutting-edge hardware, software, and research capabilities to create products that can benefit millions — and eventually billions — of people.

To succeed, we need to assemble world-class teams across everything we do. We hire people who are exceptional at their craft, believe hard things are worth doing, and execute relentlessly — people who expect the highest levels of both rigor and integrity from each other.

## About the role

As a member of research staff at Nudge, you will:

- Execute rodent experiments (mice and rats) in compliance with standardized protocols
- Perform and support in vivo procedures, including animal stereotaxic surgery, neural imaging, electrophysiology, behavior, and ultrasound delivery
- Perform rodent perfusions, brain extraction, and tissue collection for downstream histological and molecular analysis
- Conduct in vitro cell culture and brain slice experiments
- Design, build, and improve experimental setups, tools, and laboratory workflows

## About you

We are looking for research staff of all levels. Regardless of your experience level, you should have:

- Hands-on experience working in a preclinical or animal research laboratory, neuroscience experience preferred
- Experience handling rodents (mice and/or rats) and familiarity with basic in vivo techniques (dosing, anesthesia, perfusion, tissue harvest)
- Experience with stereotactic viral injections or cranial window implantations preferred
- Familiarity with sterile cell culture technique
- Comfortable building things with your hands — fabricating simple fixtures, adapting equipment, and solving practical problems in the lab
- Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in neuroscience, biology, or a related field preferred
- High integrity and strong professional judgment

## About Nudge

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Developing non-invasive ultrasound-based brain interfaces to treat neurological disorders and enhance human cognition.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series A)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2024
- **Founders**: Fred Ehrsam (Co-Founder & CEO), Jeremy Barenholtz (Co-Founder, President & CTO), Quintin Frerichs (Co-Founder)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Biotechnology / Neurotechnology (non-invasive neuromodulation)
- **Target customers**: Initially medical patients suffering from addiction, chronic pain, and anxiety; long-term goal is a consumer device for cognitive enhancement (focus, sleep, learning, memory).
- **Mission statement**: "To develop the best technology for interfacing with the brain to improve people's lives." [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)

## Products & Services
- **Nudge Device (Helmet)**: A high-channel-count ultrasound phased array packed into a helmet that operates inside an MRI machine. It delivers anatomically precise, personalized focused ultrasound to deep brain regions while using advanced imaging to visualize targets and effects. This is a non-invasive, vertically integrated hardware/software system. [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)
- **Future Portable Device**: A miniaturized, home-use version designed to be as simple and ubiquitous as headphones, with built-in imaging capabilities and personalized stimulation. [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Not disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding – $100M (Series A, August 2025)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Series A led by Thrive Capital and Greenoaks. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/nudge-corp)
- **Growth Signals**: 
  - Headcount grew from ~14 to 32 employees in the past year (+105.9% YoY). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/nudge-corp)
  - Active job postings increased 66.7% YoY (20 open roles). [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/nudge-nudgecom)
  - First device prototype built in six months, with a significantly improved second iteration already completed. [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)
  - Early evidence: single session of ultrasound reduced cravings in opioid use patients, with effects persisting up to 90 days. [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Non-invasive deep brain access**: Uses focused ultrasound to reach millimeter-size subregions deep in the brain without surgery.
- **MRI compatibility**: The helmet works inside an MRI scanner, enabling real-time structural and functional imaging to verify targeting and effects.
- **Vertically integrated**: Builds custom hardware, software, simulation, and imaging algorithms in-house.
- **Whole-brain approach**: Designed to eventually interface with any brain region, not just superficial areas.

## Strategic Focus
- **Near-term**: Demonstrate safety and efficacy for medical conditions (addiction, chronic pain, anxiety) through clinical studies.
- **Long-term**: Develop a portable, affordable, consumer-grade device for daily cognitive enhancement (focus, sleep, learning, memory).
- **Technology roadmap**: Continue iterating on the MRI-guided helmet while building the foundation for a miniaturized at-home device. [nudge.com](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Mission-driven, tackling hard scientific and engineering problems at the frontier of brain-computer interfaces.
- **Work policy**: In-office (San Francisco) – employees work from physical offices. [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/nudge-nudgecom)
- **Team**: Rapidly growing; currently ~32 people with a heavy technical and research focus (34% technical, 23% research). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/nudge-corp)
- **Perks**: Opportunity to contribute to a groundbreaking technology that could help billions; ownership over challenging hardware, software, and research problems.
- **Hiring**: 20+ open roles across engineering, research, and operations. Apply via [jobs.ashbyhq.com/nudge](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/nudge)

## Sources
1. [nudge.com – Company Homepage](https://www.nudge.com/)
2. [nudge.com – Mission, Technology, and Approach](https://www.nudge.com/blog/about/)
3. [builtin.com – Nudge Company Profile](https://builtin.com/company/nudge-nudgecom)
4. [linkedin.com – Nudge Company Page](https://www.linkedin.com/company/nudge-corp)

## Other roles at Nudge

- [Clinical Research Operations Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/clinical-research-operations-manager-nudge-san-francisco-qgn8tw94fw5x) — San Francisco, CA
- [Finance Operations Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/finance-operations-manager-nudge-san-francisco-knfwcfaqp2r9) — San Francisco, CA
- [Mechanical Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/mechanical-engineer-nudge-san-francisco-trne1m2ymsxz) — San Francisco, CA
- [Session Operator](https://feeny.ai/job/session-operator-nudge-san-francisco-dmra3dsc5d99) — San Francisco, CA
- [Clinical Research Coordinator](https://feeny.ai/job/clinical-research-coordinator-nudge-san-francisco-trtf6074y886) — San Francisco, CA
- [Histotechnologist](https://feeny.ai/job/histotechnologist-nudge-san-francisco-s199c1tjhxwm) — San Francisco, CA
- [MR Technologist](https://feeny.ai/job/mr-technologist-nudge-san-francisco-cwr7gd4r6487) — San Francisco, CA
- [MR Physicist](https://feeny.ai/job/mr-physicist-nudge-san-francisco-exzz9faqmvkx) — San Francisco, CA
- [Technical Sourcer](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-sourcer-nudge-san-francisco-07n9yb47x57v) — San Francisco, CA
- [Recruiting Coordinator](https://feeny.ai/job/recruiting-coordinator-nudge-san-francisco-ew6eg81fjsx2) — San Francisco, CA