About Zap Energy

Zap is advancing the next generation of nuclear power technology across fusion, fission and hybrid applications. Built on an integrated platform of high-energy-density physics and pulsed power, liquid metals and advanced materials, and compact, modular systems, Zap is building the foundational technologies needed to deploy the energy sources of the future.

As Zap’s Vice President of Public Affairs, you will be the chief architect of how Zap Energy is understood by the world. You will craft and guard the company's narrative, drive its presence at the highest levels of industry discourse, shape the emerging category of the integrated nuclear company, and ensure that Zap's voice is heard clearly and credibly through every channel — from congressional briefings to keynote stages to published research.

This is a senior leadership role reporting directly to the CEO. It requires someone who thrives at the intersection of deep technical substance and compelling public communication — a rare profile that only emerges from genuine years in the arena. Zap needs a communications executive with the judgement, presence and gravitas to become a trusted advisor to the CEO and leadership team. Someone who can influence decisions before they become communications challenges, not simply communicate them afterwards.

You will lead a small and growing team of communications professionals and leverage third parties to engage multiple audiences: public sector, industrial/commercial, and scientific.

Responsibilities – what you will do

Vision & Story

Translate Zap's scientific and strategic vision into a clear, compelling public narrative that resonates across audiences — from policymakers and institutional investors to engineers and energy journalists. You will be a trusted thought partner to the CEO and executive team, helping the company articulate not just what it does, but why it matters at this moment in history.

• Own the company's overarching narrative and ensure consistency across all touchpoints
• Lead the development of executive communications, speeches, op-eds, and published perspectives for senior leadership
• Build and maintain the editorial voice of Zap Energy — rigorous, ambitious, and grounded
• Lead your team to partner with the science and engineering teams to translate technical progress into accessible, accurate public milestones

Messaging & Brand

Define and steward the messaging architecture that positions Zap as a category-defining company. Every word matters — from a press release to a recruiting page to a congressional testimony. You will build the systems and discipline that keep Zap's brand sharp and coherent as the company scales.

• Develop and maintain the company's core messaging framework, value propositions, and audience-specific variations
• Oversee brand voice guidelines and ensure alignment across marketing, recruiting, business development, and government affairs
• Continuously refine messaging in response to competitive landscape, regulatory environment, and public conversation around nuclear energy

Events & Conference Presence

Ensure Zap is represented by internal technical experts at the events that shape the future of energy — not just attending, but leading conversations. Build a deliberate presence strategy that puts Zap's leaders on the right stages and in the right rooms.

• Working with your team and internal leaders, identify, prioritize, and secure Zap's participation in high-impact industry, policy, and technology events globally
• Prepare and coach executives for keynotes, panels, and media appearances
• Oversee conference and event strategy with clear objectives — policy influence, talent, media, investor, and partner goals
• Host strategic delegations and site visits, including government, academic, and media tours of Zap facilities

Publishing & Content

Oversee a publishing capability that positions Zap as the authoritative voice on the future of nuclear energy. This includes peer-reviewed science communication, long-form perspectives, and earned media — not content marketing.

• Provide clear guidance on a proactive publishing calendar for white papers, op-eds, and research communications aligned with scientific milestones
• Partner your team with science and policy teams to produce rigorous, credible content for technical and general audiences
• Drive earned media strategy — guiding relationships with key journalists, editors, and media organizations covering energy, climate, and national security
• Oversee the company's web presence, blog, and social channels as publishing platforms, ensuring quality and consistency

Crisis Communications

Lead with transparency and speed when the unexpected happens, protecting Zap's reputation while upholding the trust the industry depends on.

• Partner with the executive team to maintain Zap's crisis communications playbook, protocols, and escalation procedures
• Serve as primary communications lead in the event of an incident, regulatory challenge, or reputational issue
• Help build relationships with regulators, community stakeholders, and media in advance of any crisis
• Advise leadership on reputational risk across strategic decisions, partnerships, and public positions

Defining the Category: The Integrated Nuclear Company

This may be the most consequential aspect of the role. Zap is not just another fusion startup, and not just another fission developer. It is something new: an integrated nuclear company that will invent, build, and deploy the full spectrum of advanced nuclear energy systems. You will lead the work of the communications team in making that category real in the public imagination — a category that Zap defines and others will one day compete to join.

• Align the category narrative for the integrated nuclear company and socialize it across media, policy, and investment audiences
• Along with your team and other Zap experts, engage with think tanks, energy transition coalitions, and policy bodies to advance the case for integrated nuclear as a national and global priority
• Approve the language, frameworks, and proof points that make the category legible, credible, and compelling
• Position Zap as the defining reference point for this category in congressional testimony, public discourse, and industry dialogue utilizing internal and third-party government relations experts

Qualifications

Required Experience

• 15+ years of experience in public affairs, communications, or external relations in a nascent or high-stakes industry — including at least one of the following relevant areas: commercial space, biotechnology, advanced energy, deep tech, semiconductors, or other sectors where public perception and policy environment had to be actively built, not inherited
• Demonstrated track record of scaling a communications and public relations function and executing communications strategies that shaped public understanding of a new technology or category
• Experience managing communications through regulatory scrutiny, public controversy, or fast-moving media environments
• Prior experience as a primary media spokesperson or executive communications advisor
• Proven ability to write and edit at a high level across formats — long-form, executive voice, and technical translation

What Sets the Strongest Candidates Apart

• Experience in energy, nuclear, or climate-adjacent industries, with understanding of the NRC regulatory environment and public discourse around nuclear
• History of driving category creation — not just brand building, but the work of making a new type of company or technology legible and desirable
• Deep existing relationships with energy, climate, and national security media
• Comfort operating at the intersection of science, policy, and commerce — credible to physicists and senators alike
• Experience standing up a public affairs function from an early or formative stage

Employment may be conditioned upon the ability to obtain export authorization. Estimated salary range: $240,000-310,000 annually. Candidates may be considered for other positions at Zap Energy and actual salary will be based on relevant education, experience, and other qualifications. Range is published in accordance with Washington Equal Pay and Opportunity Act.

Zap Energy is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws and regulations.