Associate Scientist/Scientist I, Molecular Function

Profluent Bio; Emeryville (CA); On-site; USD 132,000 - 167,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation with equity

401(k) with strong match

Health/dental/vision insurance

Generous PTO

Professional development

Job summary

Profluent Bio in Emeryville, CA, is seeking an experienced protein engineer to lead display campaigns and build high-throughput platforms for measuring protein-protein interactions at scale.

This bench-focused role runs campaigns, builds and validates assays, and sets QC controls, collaborating with ML, protein design, automation, and bioinformatics colleagues.

You'll drive end-to-end phage display work, from library construction to hit validation, shaping data for model training and evaluation.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in a relevant biology field with industry experience.
• Hands-on phage display and antibody discovery experience.
• Strong molecular biology skills for library construction.
• Experience turning sequencing data into quantitative measurements.
• Excellent analytical and troubleshooting skills with meticulous record-keeping.

Responsibilities

• Build founding high-throughput platforms for identifying and measuring protein-protein interactions.
• Lead phage display campaigns end-to-end from library construction through panning, NGS, and hit validation.
• Design and troubleshoot selection strategies, including antigen selection, library QC, and stringency selections.
• Plan campaigns with ML and protein design scientists and define data fit for model training and evaluation.

Skills

Phage display

Antibody discovery

Molecular biology

Data analysis

Education

MS/PhD in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Protein Engineering, Biophysics, Immunology

Tools

NGS data analysis

LIMS

Job description

Profluent is the frontier AI lab for biology. Profluent builds powerful foundation models for all of life's molecules, unlocking solutions that transform medicine, agriculture, and beyond. Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Emeryville, CA, Profluent is backed by leading investors including Altimeter Capital, Bezos Expeditions, Spark Capital, Insight Partners, Air Street Capital, AIX Ventures, and Convergent Ventures and has raised over $150M to date.

The Role

Profluent is scaling the discovery engines that supply data for AI-driven antibody and protein design. We're hiring an experienced protein engineer to lead display campaigns and build high-throughput platforms for measuring protein-protein interactions (PPI) at scale.

This is primarily a bench role. You'll run your own campaigns, build and validate assays, and set the controls and QC that turn raw screening output into model-ready datasets, working closely with ML, protein design, automation, and bioinformatics colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Build the founding high-throughput platforms for identifying and measuring protein-protein interactions.
• Lead phage display campaigns end-to-end, from library construction through panning, NGS, and hit validation.
• Design and troubleshoot selection strategies, including antigen selection, library QC, and stringency selections.
• Plan campaigns with ML and protein design scientists (targets, assays, readouts) and define what makes binding data fit for model training and evaluation.

Qualifications

• MS (3 + years industry experience) or PhD in (0- 2 years industry experience), Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Protein Engineering, Biophysics, Immunology, or a related discipline.
• Deep hands‑on experience with phage display and antibody discovery (required).
• Strong molecular biology skills for library construction.
• Solid understanding of NGS-based screening and how to turn sequencing data into quantitative measurements.
• Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills, with careful attention to detail and record-keeping.

Preferences

• Experience in therapeutic antibody optimization: affinity maturation, developability, and format engineering.
• Experience in measuring binding kinetics and affinity by SPR or BLI/Octet, and epitope mapping.
• Familiarity with other display systems (yeast, mammalian, ribosome, or mRNA).
• Familiarity with lab automation platforms such as Hamilton or Tecan.
• Moving a new assay or platform into routine use; familiarity with LIMS and data/metadata schemas.

What We Offer

• High-growth opportunity with meaningful impact on the future of protein design
• Competitive compensation package with equity participation
• 401(k) with a strong employer match
• Comprehensive benefits including health/dental/vision insurance
• Generous PTO policy and commitment to work‑life balance
• Professional development opportunities in a cutting‑edge field at the intersection of AI and biology

Profluent Bio, Inc is an equal opportunity employer promoting diversity and inclusion in the workspace. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical conditions, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity and gender expression), sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding), genetic information, taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, or any other basis protected by law.

Hiring Salary Range

$132,000 — $167,000 USD

NOTICE TO STAFFING AND SEARCH FIRMS: Profluent does not accept unsolicited candidate submissions. We ask that agencies refrain from sending resumes to our careers inbox, hiring managers, or any Profluent employee. Any resume submitted without a signed agreement and an active search request from our Talent team will be treated as the property of Profluent, and no placement fee will be owed.