Head of Functional Genomics — AI-Driven Lab Innovation

Substrate Bio Ltd; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

Learning budget

Equity

Job summary

Substrate Bio Ltd in London is hiring a Head of Functional Genomics to build and lead the vertical from scratch. The role covers cell line engineering, perturbation design, screens, and sequencing readouts, with data feeding foundation model training.

The position is hybrid with a King’s Cross lab presence. You will own screening menus, recruit senior scientists and technicians, and shape workflows for autonomous execution starting from day one.

Qualifications

• Seven or more years of experience in functional genomics or related disciplines (target validation, perturbation screening).
• End-to-end hands-on experience in screening modalities (e.g., CRISPR knockout or CRISPRi).
• Experience leading a scientific team and hiring personnel.
• Experience working with customers or internal stakeholders.
• Ability to design screening menus and automation-ready protocols.

Responsibilities

• Own the functional genomics end-to-end, from scope to validation and data generation.
• Define quality thresholds and set workflow to automation readiness.
• Lead and hire scientists and technicians for scale.
• Collaborate with software and AI teams on data flows to foundation model training.
• Engage with foundation model partners on screen co-design.

Skills

Functional genomics

Leadership

Screening design

Automation-first mindset

Team hiring/mentoring

Bench research

Customer-facing experience

Tools

LIMS

ELN

Job description

Substrate Bio Ltd in London is hiring a Head of Functional Genomics to build and lead the vertical from scratch. The role covers cell line engineering, perturbation design, screens, and sequencing readouts, with data feeding foundation model training.

The position is hybrid with a King’s Cross lab presence. You will own screening menus, recruit senior scientists and technicians, and shape workflows for autonomous execution starting from day one.