Lead Cytopathologist

Company Description

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies—like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion—have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

We’re a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful—because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

If you’re ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you’ll find your purpose here.

Job Description

Primary Function:

As a Lead Cytopathologist, you will serve as a medical and scientific expert in the development of algorithmic pathology solutions.  You will provide medical and scientific oversight for dataset curation, annotation strategy, and algorithm evaluation, ensuring that our products are clinically robust and aligned with real-world pathology practice.  You will also help manage and train annotator teams to ensure quality, consistency, and scalability of labeled datasets.  This role requires a board-certified pathologist with a deep understanding of cytopathology, rapid on site evaluation, and pathology workflows. Ability to work at our San Carlos, CA office is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities:

• Provide expert pathology guidance across product development initiatives

• Work with a team of consultant pathologists to support annotation, validation, and research activities

• Evaluate and annotate pathology images and data

• Oversee pathology data quality, consistency, and interpretability across diverse datasets

• Guide algorithm validation, ground truth curation, and performance evaluation from a clinical perspective

• Contribute to product development roadmaps and clinical validation studies

• Participate in scientific research, publications, and presentations

• Represent pathology and clinical interests in cross-functional discussions

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum Education: MD / DO, Board certification in pathology and fellowship training in cytopathology

• 5+ years of experience in clinical cytopathology and ROSE

• Strong understanding of pathology workflows, sample preparation, and diagnostic criteria

• Familiarity with digital pathology and ability to adapt to and learn new digital workflows

• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to translate clinical insight into actionable guidance for non-clinical and technical teams

Preferred Qualifications:

• Prior experience in medical imaging annotation and digital pathology

• Involvement in research or validation of AI-based pathology tools

• Prior experience in diagnostics or healthcare technology

• Publications or presentations in computational pathology or AI applications

• Familiarity with ML/AI workflows and dataset curation

• Experience with regulatory frameworks for medical data (FDA, CE, HIPAA)

• Up to 20% travel

Additional Information

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19.  Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

U.S. Export Controls Disclaimer:  In accordance with the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR §743.13(b)), some roles at Intuitive Surgical may be subject to U.S. export controls for prospective employees
who are nationals from countries currently on embargo or sanctions status.

Certain information you provide as part of the application will be used for purposes of determining whether Intuitive Surgical will need to (i) obtain an export license from the U.S. Government on your behalf (note: the government’s licensing process can take 3 to 6+ months) or (ii) implement a Technology Control Plan (“TCP”) (note: typically adds 2 weeks to the hiring process).  

For any Intuitive role subject to export controls, final offers are contingent upon obtaining an approved export license and/or an executed TCP prior to the prospective employee’s
start date, which may or may not be flexible, and within a timeframe that does not unreasonably impede the hiring need. If applicable, candidates will be notified and instructed on any requirements for these purposes. 

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate’s experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate’s qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.