Research Engineer | Pre-Seed Start-up

Cubiq Recruitment; Remote; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative BioAI company in the UK is seeking a Research Engineer (ML) to develop and evaluate machine learning models that directly impact sustainability and food security. The role involves hands-on model development, collaboration with scientists, and the opportunity to shape the research direction. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in ML, Python, and PyTorch. This fully remote position offers a competitive salary and meaningful equity, supporting scientific advancements through rigorous research.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Meaningful equity

Support for publications and conferences

Direct impact on sustainability

Remote work opportunity

Qualifications

• Strong background in ML, computer science or related field.
• Experience in developing ML models in a research environment.
• Proficiency in Python and PyTorch.
• Ability to design and evaluate experiments critically.
• Experience extending or refactoring academic codebases.

Responsibilities

• Develop and evaluate machine learning models.
• Implement ideas from recent research into functioning models.
• Design and run scientific experiments.
• Collaborate closely with scientists for ML solutions.
• Communicate results through reports and publications.

Skills

Machine learning

Python

PyTorch

Applied mathematics

Software engineering

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Education

PhD, MSc, or equivalent experience

Tools

Weights & Biases

MLflow

RDKit

OpenMM

GROMACS

PyRosetta

Job description

Research Engineer (ML)

Remote (UK)

£90,000 – £120,000 + generous equity

Company Overview

We’re working with a well-funded early-stage BioAI company applying machine learning to a challenging biological problem with real impact on sustainability and food security.

The team is building an ML-first research platform where models are developed, validated, and actively used by scientists to guide real experimental decisions.

The Role

They are looking for a Research Engineer who will work closely with ML scientists, chemists, and biologists to design, implement, and evaluate new modelling approaches. Your focus will be on building models, running experiments, validating results, and ensuring that research code is robust and reproducible.

This role suits someone who enjoys hands‑on model development and wants their work to directly influence scientific discovery, while still caring deeply about code quality and collaboration.

What you’ll do

• Develop and evaluate machine learning models, including generative and predictive approaches.
• Implement and adapt ideas from recent research papers into working models and experiments.
• Design and run experiments, analyse results, and validate findings with scientific rigour.
• Build high-quality research software that is maintainable, tested, and usable by scientists across the company.
• Collaborate closely with chemists and biologists to understand their workflows and translate scientific questions into ML solutions.
• Support internal users by gathering feedback, troubleshooting issues, and improving tools based on real research needs.
• Communicate results through internal reports, technical documentation, and external publications or conferences.
• Contribute to shared codebases, review code, and help define best practices for research‑oriented software development.

What you will bring

• Strong background in machine learning, computer science, applied mathematics, or a related field (PhD, MSc, or equivalent experience).
• Experience developing ML models in a research or applied research environment.
• Proficiency in Python and PyTorch, with solid software engineering fundamentals.
• Experience working with research codebases, including extending or refactoring academic implementations.
• Ability to design experiments, evaluate results critically, and communicate findings clearly.
• Comfortable working in interdisciplinary teams and collaborating closely with scientists from different backgrounds.
• A proactive mindset and a genuine interest in applying ML to real scientific problems.

Nice to have

• Experience scaling or optimising training, evaluation, or inference workflows for ML models.
• Familiarity with experiment tracking or research tooling such as Weights & Biases or MLflow.
• Exposure to molecular modelling, cheminformatics, or bioinformatics tools such as RDKit, OpenMM, GROMACS, or PyRosetta.
• Some experience with cloud environments or GPU‑based compute, without this being a core focus.
• Interest in applied ML for scientific research and working closely with researchers to turn promising ideas into usable tools.

Why join

• Competitive salary and meaningful equity.
• Fully remote work.
• Support for publications, conferences, and patent applications.
• The chance to shape the research and technical direction of an early‑stage company.
• Direct impact on food security and environmental sustainability.
• A culture built around curiosity, rigour, ownership, and close collaboration between science and engineering.

Keywords

• Research Engineer
• Machine Learning Engineer
• ML Research Engineer
• ML Software Engineer
• AI Research Engineer
• PyTorch
• Python
• Research Software Engineer