Principal Scientist, Applied AI, Immune Pathway Discovery

Biopharma Careers; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 115,000 - 227,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Pension plan

401(k) plan

Job summary

Johnson & Johnson seeks a Principal Scientist, Applied AI in Immunology Discovery, to lead AI-enabled solutions addressing high-value biological use cases in multiple sites, including Cambridge, MA. This individual contributor role emphasizes translating prototypes into reusable capabilities with broad impact.

Required are a PhD in AI/computational sciences, 4+ years of relevant experience, and hands-on AI/ML development in Python or R.

Qualifications

• PhD in AI/Computational science or related field (CS, bioinformatics, biostatistics, engineering, physics).
• 4+ years of industry or applied research experience using computational methods.
• Experience building AI/ML solutions in R or Python and modern software environments.

Responsibilities

• Independently build and execute technical plans for AI prototypes across scientific use cases.
• Design and evaluate AI solutions, including agentic workflows and retrieval-augmented apps.
• Translate complex scientific needs into actionable requirements and success criteria.
• Collaborate with scientists and end users to gather feedback and iterate on solutions.
• Demonstrate scientific and business value through rigorous evaluation of accuracy, reliability, and impact.
• Partner with AI, data science, engineering, platform, security, and governance teams to scale prototypes.

Skills

AI/ML experience

Communication

Time management

Collaboration

Education

PhD in AI/Computational science or related field

Tools

R

Python

APIs

Containers

Job description

At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything. Our strength in healthcare innovation empowers us to build a world where complex diseases are prevented, treated, and cured, where treatments are smarter and less invasive, and solutions are personal. Through our expertise in Innovative Medicine and MedTech, we are uniquely positioned to innovate across the full spectrum of healthcare solutions today to deliver the breakthroughs of tomorrow, and profoundly impact health for humanity. Learn more at jnj.com

As guided by Our Credo, Johnson & Johnson is responsible to our employees who work with us throughout the world. We provide an inclusive work environment where each person is considered as an individual. At Johnson & Johnson, we respect the diversity and dignity of our employees and recognize their merit.

Job Function: Data Analytics & Computational Sciences

Job Sub Function: Bioinformatics

Job Category: Scientific/Technology

All Job Posting Locations: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America, San Diego, California, United States of America, Spring House, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Job Description:

About Innovative Medicine

Our expertise in Innovative Medicine is informed and inspired by patients, whose insights fuel our science-based advancements. Visionaries like you work on teams that save lives by developing the medicines of tomorrow.

Join us in developing treatments, finding cures, and pioneering the path from lab to life while championing patients every step of the way.

Learn more at https://www.jnj.com/innovative-medicine

About Immunology

Our expertise in Innovative Medicine is informed and inspired by patients, whose insights fuel our science-based advancements. Visionaries like you work on teams that save lives by developing the medicines of tomorrow.

Our Immunology team leads in the development of transformational medicines for immunological disorders and illnesses. You can influence where medicine is going by restoring health to millions of people living with immune diseases.

Join us in developing treatments, finding cures, and pioneering the path from lab to life while championing patients every step of the way.

We are searching for the best talent for a Principal Scientist, Applied AI, in Immunology Discovery, to be in Spring House, PA, La Jolla, CA or Cambridge, MA.

This role is on the Immune Pathway Discovery (IPD) team, which is part of Immunology Discovery in the Immunology Therapeutic Area. IPD is responsible for identifying the next wave of transformational therapeutic pathways and applying human data and emerging technologies to advance our Discovery portfolio. This is an individual contributor role focused on designing, building, and piloting AI-enabled solutions that address high-value scientific use cases. The role will partner closely with discovery scientists, computational colleagues, and enterprise technology teams to translate successful prototypes into reusable capabilities with broader impact.

The successful candidate will have a strong technical background in R&D, exposure to artificial intelligence, and an established track record of building practical solutions that drive scientific or business impact. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of this role, strong technical, collaboration, communication, product thinking, and time management skills are critical.

Key Responsibilities:

• Independently build, align, and execute technical plans for AI prototypes across multiple scientific use cases.
• Design, develop, and evaluate hands-on AI solutions, including agentic workflows, scientific copilots, retrieval-augmented applications, and AI-assisted analytical tools.
• Translate complex or ambiguous scientific needs into clear user requirements, testable product hypotheses, success criteria, and implementation plans.
• Partner directly with scientists and end users to understand workflows, gather feedback, and iteratively improve solutions.
• Demonstrate scientific and business value through rigorous evaluation of accuracy, reliability, usability, reproducibility, and impact.
• Collaborate with enterprise AI, data science, engineering, platform, architecture, security, and governance teams to transition validated prototypes toward scalable solutions.

Requirements:

• PhD in a field relevant to artificial intelligence and computational science, including, but not limited to, Computer Science, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Engineering, or Physics.
• 4+ years of relevant industry or applied research experience using computational methods to solve complex scientific or business problems.
• Demonstrated experience building working AI or machine learning solutions, prototypes, or research software in R or Python and modern software development environments.
• Practical experience with generative AI, large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, agentic workflows, AI-assisted coding, or related technologies.
• Experience integrating data sources, scientific tools, models, APIs, MCPs, or computational workflows while respecting data governance, security, privacy, and intellectual property requirements.
• A proven ability to communicate and collaborate across scientific and technical disciplines.
• Exceptional scientific rigor and attention to detail.
• Ability to independently formulate technical plans, troubleshoot complex systems, manage multiple priorities, and deliver usable outcomes.

Preferred experiences:

• Experience applying AI in pharmaceutical research, biotechnology, healthcare, or another regulated scientific environment.
• Knowledge of drug discovery, immunology, molecular biology, translational research, or high-dimensional biomedical data.
• Experience with cloud computing, containers, version control, model evaluation, observability, and secure deployment patterns.
• Experience moving a prototype from proof of concept toward production through partnership with engineering, platform, governance, and business stakeholders.
• Product-oriented mindset, including user discovery, iterative design, adoption measurement, and value realization.
• Ability to build and leverage a strong scientific and technical network to drive enterprise impact.

The anticipated base pay range for this position is $115,000 to $227,000

Employees and/or eligible dependents may be eligible to participate in the following Company sponsored employee benefit programs: medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short- and long-term disability, business accident insurance, and group legal insurance.

Employees may be eligible to participate in the Company’s consolidated retirement plan (pension) and savings plan (401(k)).

This position is eligible to participate in the Company’s long-term incentive program.

Employees are eligible for the following time off benefits:

• Vacation – up to 120 hours per calendar year
• Sick time - up to 40 hours per calendar year; for employees who reside in the State of Washington – up to 56 hours per calendar year
• Holiday pay, including Floating Holidays – up to 13 days per calendar year
• Work, Personal and Family Time - up to 40 hours per calendar year

Additional information can be found through the link below. For additional general information on company benefits, please go to: https://www.careers.jnj.com/employee-benefits

Johnson & Johnson is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by federal, state or local law. We actively seek qualified candidates who are protected veterans and individuals with disabilities as defined under VEVRAA and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Johnson & Johnson is committed to providing an interview process that is inclusive of our applicants’ needs. If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request an accommodation, external applicants please contact us via https://www.jnj.com/contact-us/careers . Internal employees contact AskGS to be directed to your accommodation resource.

Preferred Skills:

Advanced Analytics, Analytical Reasoning, Bioinformatics, Coaching, Critical Thinking, Database Structures, Data Privacy Standards, Data Science, Industry Analysis, Interdisciplinary Work, Organizing, Productivity Planning, Quality Standards, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Application, Scripting Languages, Statistical Computing, Technical Credibility, Technical Writing

The anticipated base pay range for this position is : $117,000.00 - $201,250.00