Joining Paradigm

I’m beginning a new chapter as an entrepreneur in residence at Paradigm.

Paradigm is giving me something incredibly cool. I’ll have the freedom to search for the next important thing worth building. After more than five years helping build Varda Space Industries as the head of R&D, I’m planning on stepping back, looking broadly, and following my curiosity (like I did here wiring vision into Jev so this robot arm can play chess). 

An EIR sits somewhere between researcher, inventor, and founder in waiting. Paradigm feels like a natural home for that kind of exploration, full of earnest nerds who pair deep technical curiosity with research.

My role is to explore important problem spaces, develop conviction, run experiments, and eventually turn the most promising direction into something real. In many ways, it feels like a natural extension of my hobbies and passion projects. 

I’ll be in SF during the week and LA on weekends. I want to use that time to meet as many interesting people as I can. Let’s get coffee and talk about energy, compute, artificial intelligence, and manufacturing. I want to hear about your most ambitious ideas and deepest technical rabbit holes. You can reach me via DM on X and email at amccalip@paradigm.xyz.