Hardware Engineer, Peptide Synthesis Automation

Capable; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Wellness budget

Comprehensive healthcare

Visa sponsorship

Daily team dinners

401K plan

Job summary

Capable Labs in San Francisco seeks a hardware engineer to pioneer a novel peptide synthesis instrument. You will own the design, build, and optimization of automated systems, interfacing with chemists to translate failure modes into hardware improvements.

A strong background in electromechanical hardware and lab instrumentation is essential. You will work in a mission-driven team, delivering robust systems with high throughput and reproducibility.

Qualifications

• Experience designing, building, or maintaining laboratory instrumentation.
• Hands-on experience with electromechanical hardware.
• Ability to diagnose instrumentation issues and implement improvements.
• Background in mechanical, electrical, chemical engineering, bioengineering, automation, or related fields.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop automated peptide synthesis systems for high-throughput SPPS.
• Engineer fluidic architectures including pumps, valves, and reactors.
• Develop reaction modules with inline sensing and thermal management.
• Create control systems for timed reagent addition, flow, temperature, and fault recovery.
• Prototype and test electromechanical systems including sensors, actuators, and controllers.
• Validate hardware performance against purity, yield, and cycle time targets.
• Collaborate with chemists to translate failure modes into hardware improvements.
• Develop test protocols and quality criteria for subsystems and integration.
• Integrate synthesizer with analytical workflows (HPLC, LC-MS, QC).
• Drive toward faster, more reproducible peptide synthesis with minimal manual intervention.

Skills

Systems design

Problem solving

Ownership

Collaboration

Job description

About The Role

We are a vibrant and intensely mission-driven team in San Francisco, comprising members from MIT, Harvard Medical School, Roche, ETH, and Dana-Farber.

About The Role

We are a vibrant and intensely mission-driven team in San Francisco, comprising members from MIT, Harvard Medical School, Roche, ETH, and Dana-Farber.

We value speed and rigor, coupled with excitement, drive, and a strong work ethic. In an early-stage environment, we value people who can bring clarity to open-ended problems, take ownership of the next steps, and follow through with energy.

Capable Labs is a place for ambitious, high-integrity people who want to become dramatically better. You will be surrounded by people who care intensely about the work, get close feedback from the people making scientific and company-defining decisions, and have room to own increasingly important problems.

We believe excellent work should be met with meaningful reward, ownership, and trust. Responsibility is earned through contribution, not title alone: anyone who demonstrates the judgment, rigor, and follow-through to move important work forward can earn meaningful scope.

What You’ll Do

You do not need to have experience with every item on this list; we value deep expertise in some areas and a willingness to learn in others.

• Design and develop automated peptide synthesis systems for high-throughput, reliable solid-phase peptide synthesis, encompassing reagent delivery, resin handling, deprotection, coupling, washing, cleavage interface, and process monitoring.
• Engineer comprehensive fluidic architectures, including pumps, valves, manifolds, tubing, reactors, frits, seals, pressure control, solvent compatibility, dead volume management, cross-contamination prevention, priming, draining, and waste handling.
• Develop advanced reaction modules for SPPS, such as resin cartridges, packed-bed reactors, agitation/mixing solutions, temperature management, microwave or thermal integration, inline sensing, and reproducible reagent contact.
• Create robust control systems to manage timed reagent addition, flow rate, pressure, temperature, mixing, cycle logic, fault detection, and implement automated recovery procedures for clogs, leaks, pressure excursions, or failed deliveries.
• Prototype, test, and troubleshoot electromechanical systems including pumps, solenoids, stepper motors, sensors, heaters, pressure transducers, balances, liquid-level sensors, optical sensors, and embedded controllers.
• Assess and validate hardware performance against key chemical outputs such as crude purity, deletion sequences, incomplete coupling, side products, yield, reproducibility, cycle time, resin swelling, and cleavage efficiency.
• Collaborate closely with chemists to translate synthesis failure modes into hardware improvements, addressing challenges such as poor mixing, insufficient reagent excess, channeling, dead volume, moisture ingress, valve carryover, slow draining, temperature gradients, or instrument downtime.
• Develop test protocols and quality acceptance criteria for each subsystem, including dispense accuracy, carryover, leak rate, pressure stability, thermal uniformity, solvent compatibility, and run-to-run reproducibility.
• Integrate the synthesizer with analytical workflows such as HPLC, LC-MS, preparative HPLC, balance measurements, barcode/sample tracking, and batch-level quality control.
• Drive efforts towards creating an instrument that enables faster, more reproducible peptide synthesis with minimal manual intervention compared to standard industry workflows.

Who You Are

• You will be instrumental in establishing the hardware engineering function at Capable. This is a critical role focused on pioneering the development of a novel peptide synthesis instrument.
• You possess the expertise and confidence to take ownership of complex physical systems and are committed to delivering dependable, high-quality performance.
• You demonstrate strong initiative and problem-solving skills. When instrumentation issues occur, such as abnormal pressure traces, leaks, or suboptimal synthesis outcomes, you systematically diagnose root causes and enact effective improvements.
• You may have a background in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemical engineering, bioengineering, analytical chemistry, automation, robotics, or possess equivalent hands‑on experience. Candidates from nontraditional backgrounds who have demonstrated excellence in building scientific instruments are also encouraged to apply.
• You have substantive, practical experience in designing, building, or maintaining laboratory instrumentation, automation systems, microfluidic/fluidic devices, or electromechanical hardware for chemical or biological research applications.

Pay & Benefits

• $130,000-$190,000 salary, plus equity options with an implied current value of approximately $50,000-$200,000 before exercise cost, taxes, dilution, and liquidity risk.
• Compensation will depend on the skills, experience, and scope of impact you bring. If your background, experience, or compensation needs fall outside this range, we are still open to a conversation based on the scope and impact you could bring.
• $500+ monthly wellness budget for training, supplements, coaching, recovery, or other tools that help you perform at your best.
• Healthcare: We offer a broad range of medical, dental, and vision coverage options, with Capable covering 100% of the base policy.
• You will also have access to HSA, FSA, and 401K plans.
• Healthy dinners with the team are provided daily.
• We support visa sponsorship where appropriate, including O-1, H-1B, J-1, TN, and other employment-based pathways. Our team is already international, with members from Canada, Pakistan, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, China, India, and the United States.

Compensation Range: $130K - $190K