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ABOUT US

Synthesize Bio is an early stage startup using generative AI to fundamentally change life sciences research and accelerate the pace of biomedical discovery.

Genomic data are at the heart of most modern molecular studies and tools, from basic research to clinical decision support, but these data are hard to work with. Genomic data require expensive laboratories, sophisticated computational infrastructure, and big teams to produce and analyze. Generating and analyzing genomic data takes weeks or months. We’re building generative AI models to cut that time down to minutes or hours.

Our platform addresses a huge need in the large and rapidly growing use of genomics in research, from basic science to therapeutic development. mRNA therapeutics alone - a subset of the overall market we serve - is projected to be a $100 billion market by 2026. This is an opportunity to be part of a mission to transform life sciences R&D by dramatically accelerating the pace of discovery.

WHO WE ARE

Our team has dedicated their careers to moving the needle in biomedical research and education and has a deep understanding of how to build a transformative product in this space. Our founders each have ~20 years of experience in life sciences, genomic data generation and analysis, and AI/ML and data science. Our team has leading experts in the design, execution, collection, and application of AI/ML methods to large biological studies; has previously led and scaled startups; and are experts in scientific training and enablement. We have lived the problem and are ready to solve it!

WHAT YOU’LL DO IN THIS ROLE

We are looking for a senior computational biologist to join our mission and be an early part of building our AI-powered platform at the intersection of machine learning and life sciences discovery. This role sits on the data team, whose expertise is computational biology. The data team drives the company’s internal research, external partnerships, and training data creation.

You will help to build out our data and bioinformatics strategy and long-term technical vision. Specifically:

• Develop internal research leveraging our AI models that showcase their capabilities
• Develop and execute benchmarking strategies and methods to compare externally developed models to our internal models
• Enable and support collaborations with potential customers to help them maximize the impact of our platform
• Provide technical leadership to design and execute data projects

TYPICAL QUALIFICATIONS

The best candidates do not always match the criteria mentioned in the job description. If you are excited about our vision, meet the minimum requirements, and feel that you could be a valuable asset to our team, please apply.

This role requires experience with analyzing genomic sequencing data; the exact types of data and analyses can vary, but a desire and ability to learn quickly is essential. An interest in applying your skills to our mission is the key ingredient.

Technical skills & expertise

Must have…

• Demonstrated experience generating insights through analysis of gene expression and other omics data and communicating those results with broad audiences
• Fluency with data manipulation and processing in R and/or Python (e.g., dplyr and pandas) and collaborating with git/GitHub
• Excitement about generative AI and interest in employing AI to change how science happens
• Been part of an informatics, data science, or computational group at a commercial biotech company

Ideally you have…

• Experience managing and working with large datasets in the cloud (AWS, GCP)
• Familiarity with containers (Docker, Singularity) and workflow managers (Nextflow, WDL, CWL, etc.)
• Experience and perspective that empathizes with and represents the voices of biomedical research and development customers
• Experience collaborating with software developers on life science domain-specific applications
• Experience mentoring junior scientists in best practices and problem-solving including performing code reviews
• 5+ years post-academic training

Approach

• Open-minded and adaptable; willing to change focus and direction quickly in response to product/market demands
• Comfortable working both independently and in close collaboration with your own team as well as other teams with complementary expertise
• Strong communication and desire to be a key player
• Big-picture thinking while still being hands-on when needed

This role is an individual contributor role involving technical project management, but not direct people management.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE WORKING WITH US

Our founders have strong reputations as thoughtful, forward-thinking colleagues and mentors who cultivate talent. We’ll think intentionally and collaboratively about your career and how we build our team. Our founders’ experiences in workforce development and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion are central to our approach.

• Impact — Our platform will accelerate the pace of scientific discovery and therapy development to advance human health. This is an opportunity to build something from the ground up in a space that has a real, positive impact.
• Early employee impact — As a member of the very early team, you will play a pivotal role in helping shape our product, team, and culture. For the rest of our days, no matter how many thousands of people join after you, you will always have that honor and distinction. It looks great on a resume, too.
• Early stage equity — A benefit of joining early. None of us (neither our founders nor our investors) would be here if we didn’t think that our company will create tremendous value over time.
• Flexible location and hours – We are whole people with whole lives and expect that you are, too. We’ll trust each other to make progress as a team, in times and places that work for everyone. Preference for Seattle area. Travel to Seattle will be required from time to time – it’s a beautiful city!
• Visa support - We cannot provide visa support at this time.

SALARY

• Senior Computational Biologist $140-170K
• Principal Computational Biologist $165-190K