Fractional CMO leadership
Embedded senior ownership of your marketing function, from strategy to execution, without the cost or lead time of a full-time executive hire.
Fractional CMO / Technical marketing advisor
Roberto Iriondo
Fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor for AI companies.
I work with AI startups and tech teams as their fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor, leading website strategy, SEO, and GEO, alongside go-to-market and technical content.
Trusted by teams at GenBio AI, Cohere, Snorkel AI, MBZUAI, Carnegie Mellon, with collaborations across Google, NVIDIA, and Amazon Science.
{
"name": "Roberto Iriondo",
"role": "Fractional CMO & Technical Marketing Advisor",
"founded": "Towards AI (acq. 2022)",
"school": "ML@CMU, Carnegie Mellon University",
"based": "Remote-first, hybrid, can travel",
"focus": ["AI startups", "tech companies"],
"services": ["website strategy", "SEO/GEO", "GTM", "content"],
"available": true
}
About
Marketing built for technical products
- Focus
- AI startups & tech companies
- Based
- Remote-first, hybrid, can travel
- Education
- Entrepreneurship, Carnegie Mellon University
Computer Science, CCAC - Founded
- Towards AI (acq. 2022)
I help AI companies and tech teams solve their marketing challenges, as a fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor. My forte is website strategy and SEO, and I work with several companies at once, from AI startups preparing to launch to established teams that need senior marketing leadership. I am remote-first and flexible for hybrid roles, and I can travel as needed.
At GenBio AI I built the marketing function from zero as Fractional CMO, led all external communications during the company's early growth, and hired and onboarded our Head of Marketing to run ongoing operations. I now serve as GenBio AI's technical marketing advisor, owning website strategy, SEO, and GEO, building and maintaining site code and marketing analytics, and advising on the technical growth roadmap where marketing, web, and engineering overlap. I co-founded Towards AI in 2019, which was acquired in 2022, and I advise its CEO on strategy and growth. Earlier, I advised the president's office at MBZUAI under President and Professor Eric Xing's leadership, helping launch initiatives including LLM360 and the Institute of Foundation Models, and I led technical content as Head of Technical Content at Cohere and before that at Snorkel AI. From 2018 to 2021 I was at Carnegie Mellon University, in the Machine Learning Department, as a front end engineer and marketing lead under the direction of professors Manuela Veloso and Roni Rosenfeld.
Across that work I have collaborated with Google, Amazon Science, NVIDIA, Lambda, Udacity, Determined AI, Gather AI, and others, helping them reach their goals and improve ROI through marketing built for technical products.
Why founders hire me
Most fractional CMOs stop at strategy
The deck looks great, then execution stalls waiting on a developer, an SEO agency, and a data analyst. Technical founders need someone who closes that gap, not someone who widens it.
The full scope, plus the technical depth
Everything a fractional CMO is expected to run gets covered: brand and positioning, go-to-market and launches, messaging and communications, content, demand and pipeline, analytics, and hiring or building the team that takes it forward.
The difference is what happens underneath. The work does not get handed off. Site code gets built and maintained. Technical SEO and GEO get implemented, not just recommended. Analytics gets wired to the pipeline. And the conversations happen directly with researchers and engineers, in their language, without a translation layer. That combination, senior marketing leadership plus the ability to ship the technical work itself, is the specialty.
Where the technical work goes deep
Technical marketing is the specialty, and it follows the same path every time, from the research a company is built on to where buyers actually find it:
- 01 ResearchUnderstand the science and the product deeply enough to earn trust.
- 02 ProductTurn it into positioning that holds up with a technical audience.
- 03 WebsiteBuild the site and the technical foundation that carries it.
- 04 SearchRank in Google through technical SEO and content.
- 05 AIShow up accurately inside AI answer engines through GEO.
What I do
A fractional CMO who speaks engineer
Four ways I plug in. Most engagements combine two or three, scoped to the stage you are at.
Go-to-market for AI launches
Positioning, messaging, and launch plans that get a new model, product, or company in front of the right buyers and press.
Technical content and thought leadership
Research blogs, docs, and developer-facing content that earns trust with technical audiences, written by someone who understands the work.
SEO/GEO and web growth
Technical SEO and generative engine optimization so your company ranks in search and shows up accurately inside AI answer engines.
Track record
A decade inside AI and research
The through line: marketing that holds up with technical audiences, at companies where credibility is the whole game.
Now & founded
- GenBio AI Technical marketing advisor, 2026 to present. Fractional CMO, 2024 to 2026.
- Towards AI Co-founder, 2019. Acquired 2022. Advisor to the CEO.
- Generative AI Lab Builder.
Led & advised
- MBZUAI Advised the president's office under President and Professor Eric Xing's leadership. Helped launch LLM360 and the Institute of Foundation Models.
- Cohere Head of Technical Content, 2022 to 2023.
- Snorkel AI Head of Technical Content, 2021 to 2022.
- Carnegie Mellon University Machine Learning Department. Front end engineer and marketing lead, 2018 to 2021.
Collaborated
- Amazon Science
- NVIDIA
- Lambda
- Udacity
- Determined AI
- Gather AI
- and others
Selected work
Work in the wild
A few AI companies and teams I have helped launch, position, and grow.
GenBio AI
Launched at NeurIPS 2024, the world's largest AI research conference. I lead marketing, website strategy, and SEO.
genbio.ai
Towards AI
Co-founded in 2019, acquired in 2022. I advise the CEO on strategy and growth.
towardsai.com
LLM360
Helped launch this fully open-source LLM initiative under MBZUAI, from positioning to go-to-market.
llm360.ai
Institute of Foundation Models
Helped launch this foundation model research institute under MBZUAI.
ifm.ai
ML@CMU | Carnegie Mellon University
Front end engineer and marketing lead for the Machine Learning Department's research blog.
blog.ml.cmu.edu
Featured posts
Writing and thought leadership
Technical content and articles I have written or directed across AI research and industry.
Questions
Frequently asked
What does a fractional CMO do for an AI company?
A fractional CMO leads marketing part-time, as part of your team. For an AI company that usually means positioning, launch plans, technical content, SEO and GEO, and the website. You get senior marketing leadership without the cost of a full-time executive.
Who do you work with as a fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor?
AI startups getting ready to launch, and established AI and tech teams that need senior marketing leadership. I have worked with GenBio AI, Cohere, Snorkel AI, MBZUAI, Carnegie Mellon University, and Towards AI, and collaborated with Google, Amazon Science, NVIDIA, and Lambda.
What is a technical marketing advisor?
A marketer who understands the product and the research well enough to earn the trust of engineers and scientists. I advise on website strategy, SEO, GEO, technical content, and positioning, and I do much of the hands-on work myself, from site code to analytics.
What does a fractional CMO cost compared to a full-time hire?
Less than a full-time executive. You pay a monthly retainer or a fixed project fee instead of a salary, equity, and benefits. The exact cost depends on the scope and the time needed each month. I send a proposal after a short call.
Do you offer website strategy and SEO services?
Yes, they are my main focus. I plan the site structure, build and maintain the site code, fix technical SEO, set up analytics, and add GEO so the company shows up in search and in AI assistants.
What is GEO and why does it matter for AI companies?
GEO, or generative engine optimization, makes sure AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews can find your company and describe it correctly. More buyers now research vendors this way, so GEO matters alongside traditional SEO.
Can a fractional CMO handle end-to-end marketing?
Yes. I can run marketing from strategy and brand through launches, content, and analytics. Most engagements focus on the parts that matter most at the company's current stage.
How do fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor engagements start?
With a short call to understand the goal, then a written proposal. Most start as a monthly retainer or a fixed project, such as a website or SEO audit. I work remote-first and can travel when needed.
Do you work with AI startups or only established AI companies?
Both. With startups I usually begin with positioning, the website, and SEO. With larger companies the work leans toward launches, GEO, and technical content at scale.
What makes a technical marketing advisor different from a regular marketing consultant?
Many consultants hand over a strategy and leave. I also do the work: I build the site, fix the SEO and GEO, and write or direct the technical content, so nothing waits on a developer or an agency.
What does a fractional CMO own on the website and SEO side?
The site structure, technical SEO, content plan, GEO, and analytics. I also fix crawl and indexing problems and keep the site code in good shape.
How does a fractional CMO approach a product launch or go-to-market?
Positioning comes first. Then I plan the launch across the website, search, content, and press, so the site and SEO are ready before launch day and GEO keeps the product visible in AI assistants afterward.
Can a technical marketing advisor help with developer marketing?
Yes. I write and direct technical content, documentation, and research blogs for engineers and researchers, and make sure that content can be found in search and in AI assistants.
How much time does a fractional CMO commit each month?
It depends on the work. Some companies need a few days a month for website, SEO, and GEO oversight. Others need more during a launch. I keep a small number of clients so each one gets real attention.
Do you help AI companies with generative engine optimization (GEO) specifically?
Yes. I check how a company appears in ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews, then improve the site's structure, content, and structured data so the company is described correctly.
What industries or company types fit your fractional CMO work best?
AI companies, AI startups, research teams, and other technical companies: teams with an expert audience, where credibility matters most.
Can you improve our existing SEO and website performance?
Yes, this is a common starting point. I run a technical SEO audit, fix site health and indexing, improve the site plan, and add GEO. It often turns into an ongoing engagement.
Do you replace an in-house marketing team or work alongside one?
Both. I can build a marketing function from zero or work alongside an existing team. At GenBio AI I built the function as Fractional CMO, hired and onboarded the Head of Marketing, and stayed on as technical marketing advisor.
What results should an AI company expect from a fractional CMO?
More qualified traffic, better search rankings, accurate answers about the company in AI assistants, and content that brings in leads. Each piece of work is tied to a goal you can measure.
How do you measure SEO, GEO, and marketing success?
Search rankings, qualified organic traffic, visibility in AI assistants, and leads from the site. I connect the website analytics to these so you can see what changed.
Are you available for fractional CMO or technical marketing advisor work now?
Yes, for a limited number of fractional CMO and technical marketing advisor engagements. Use the contact form to start the conversation.
Work together
Hire a fractional CMO for your AI company
Tell me where you are headed with your marketing, website strategy, SEO, or GEO. I will tell you the fastest honest path to get there.