Automation Scientist

At LabGenius Therapeutics, our mission is to discover the next generation of therapeutic antibodies by combining human and machine intelligence. To do this, we've pioneered the development of EVA, a state-of-the-art automated platform, enabling the closed-loop discovery of high-performing, non-intuitive antibody designs using proprietary, ML-grade datasets. For our wholly-owned therapeutic pipeline, we're using our closed-loop discovery engine to establish a pipeline of highly selective T-cell engagers and ADCs for the treatment of solid tumours.

LabGenius has raised >£55M and is backed by top-tier investors, including M Ventures, Octopus Ventures, LG Corp, Atomico, Kindred Capital, Lux Capital and Obvious Ventures. The company is headquartered in London (UK) where we've established a cutting-edge antibody engineering facility, staffed by a multidisciplinary team of more than 50 scientists and engineers.

As an Automation Scientist at LabGenius, you will spearhead the design, development, and optimisation of cutting-edge automation techniques pivotal to the next frontier in therapeutic antibody discovery. We're at the exciting intersection of synthetic biology, automation, and machine learning. As we endeavour to merge high-throughput screening with lab automation, we aim to streamline processes and accelerate the creation of life-enhancing treatments.

A core part of our ethos is the seamless interplay between automation and traditional wet lab practices. We believe that our future breakthroughs will emerge from this synergy. Thus, you won't just be siloed in the world of machines; you will also roll up your sleeves, delve into assay development and screening, and be hands-on with molecular biology work, ensuring that our automation perfectly complements the intricacies of biological research.

What you'll do in this role:

• Develop, run, and maintain automated workflows, optimising them for faster, more accurate, and more robust results in a lab-based environment.
• Troubleshoot and resolve technical issues with automation systems.
• Support and train other scientists to run their own workflows on automated systems effectively.
• Rely on a range of liquid handling methodologies across multiple platforms, ensuring precision and reproducibility.
• Design experiments to improve the efficiency of molecular biology and protein production/purification and screening processes.
• Work closely with other teams to ensure that the bridge between manual and automated processes is robust and efficient.
• Carry out preparation of assay ready plates and running of routine cell-based assays as required.
• Liaise with the Software Engineering and Data Science teams to translate wet lab processes into insights using automated data capture and processing pipelines.
• Develop automation scripts and collaborate with our Software Engineering team to integrate automation scripts into our platforms.
• Maintain documentation, including protocols and technical laboratory reports.
• Be involved in the interpretation of experimental results and recommendation of subsequent experiments or optimisations.
• Stay abreast of advancements in lab automation and molecular biology, ensuring LabGenius remains at the cutting edge.
• Uphold the highest standards of accuracy and efficiency, even under tight deadlines and occasional weekend work requirements.

What we're looking for:

• Relevant Bachelor's or Master's degree paired with a proven track record of industry experience in an assay development, screening, or related environment.
• Proven ability in setting up, running, and maintaining common liquid handling systems (e.g., Beckman Coulter Biomek, Analytik Jena CyBio FeliX).
• Proven ability to automate and run biological processes, such as high-throughput screening of cell-based assays, nucleic acid or protein expression and purification.
• Demonstrated experience operating and developing workflows on various automated liquid handling platforms within an R&D setting, including writing, testing, and executing automated protocols.
• Proficiency in at least one general-purpose programming language to support technical problem solving.
• Willingness and capability to perform hands-on wet lab work such as generation of assay ready plates.
• Strong organisational and prioritisation skills to handle multiple deliverables under demanding schedules.
• High degree of initiative alongside effective analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to author thorough documentation.
• Ability to collaborate productively as part of a cross-functional, multidisciplinary team.
• Flexibility to occasionally adapt to non-standard or varying working hours when necessary.

What you'll receive from us:

• Discretionary performance linked annual bonus.
• A generous stock option plan.
• 3x Salary Life Insurance.
• Health cash back plan on day-to-day health expenses.
• Enhanced pension contribution, with an additional top-up on tax savings from us via salary sacrifice.
• Private Medical Insurance, including dental and optical.
• Discounted gym membership through either AXA or HealthShield.
• 24/7 access to GP Services.
• Access to the Cycle to Work scheme.
• 25 days annual leave (plus bank holidays).
• Paid sick leave and income protection for long-term leave.
• Paid emergency leave.
• Paid bereavement leave.
• Moving home day.
• Employee Assistance Programme including access to coaching and CBT sessions.
• Weekly team lunches from Feedr.
• A programme of social events both company-wide and within your own teams.

We believe that diversity makes for innovative, exceptional teams. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on gender, race, colour, religion or belief, national origin, age, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or any other protected class.