Scientist - Immunology

Merge; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 85,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Merge is looking for an Immunologist in San Francisco to design and validate biological strategies for promoting immune tolerance in novel brain-computer interfaces. The position requires a PhD in Immunology or Bioengineering and expertise in both in vitro and in vivo experimental methods. Responsibilities include characterizing immune responses and enhancing compatibility through collaboration with technical teams. This role is ideally suited for candidates passionate about innovation in biotechnology and eager to tackle challenging problems.

Qualifications

• Experience in designing, executing, and interpreting in vitro and in vivo experiments.
• Strong skills in quantitative reasoning and experimental rigor.
• Ability to enhance immune tolerance for novel proteins.

Responsibilities

• Characterize immunogenicity of engineered proteins in experimental models.
• Scale high-throughput assays for rapid hypothesis testing.
• Collaborate with teams for strategies to improve human compatibility.
• Drive projects from concept to execution with clear communication.

Skills

Immune response characterization

Collaboration with interdisciplinary teams

Experimental design and execution

Innovative problem solving

Education

PhD in Immunology, Bioengineering or related field

Job description

Merge Labs is a frontier research lab with the mission of bridging biological and artificial intelligence to maximize human ability, agency and experience. We’re pursuing this goal by developing fundamentally new approaches to brain-computer interfaces that interact with the brain at high bandwidth, integrate with advanced AI, and are ultimately safe and accessible for anyone to use.

About the team

Our Bio team designs, builds, and characterizes the biotechnologies that form the foundation of next-generation brain-computer interfaces. We combine molecular engineering, synthetic biology, neuroscience and advanced physical methods such as ultrasound to establish less invasive, high-bandwidth connections with neurons. The Bio team develops our core molecular technologies, validates their performance in vitro and in vivo, and demonstrates their advanced capabilities in animal models. We build custom experimental setups and pipelines and collaborate closely with engineers and data scientists. We work across disciplines to come up with creative ideas and solve some of the most challenging problems in biotechnology.

About the role

As an Immunologist, you will design, build, and validate biological strategies to establish durable immune tolerance to novel proteins involved in developing less invasive brain-computer interfaces. You will apply your expertise to characterize immune responses and develop strategies that promote immunological tolerance. Your work will establish the immunological foundation for next-generation molecular brain-computer interfaces.

In this role, you will:

• Characterize the immunogenicity of engineered proteins, establishing quantitative readouts and benchmarks for immune compatibility in relevant in vitro and in vivo experimental models.
• Scale high-throughput immune characterization assays and workflows to enable rapid hypothesis testing and iteration.
• Collaborate with our computational and protein engineering teams to design and execute strategies to enhance immunological tolerance to molecular components of next-generation brain-computer interfaces to improve human compatibility.
• Drive technical ownership of projects from concept to execution, including experimental planning, prioritization, documentation, and clear communication of results.

You might thrive in this role if you have:

• Have a PhD in Immunology, Bioengineering or a related field, or have equivalent experience leading research projects end-to-end.
• Are proficient in designing, executing, and interpreting in vitro and in vivo experiments that interrogate immune responses, with strong experimental rigor and quantitative reasoning.
• Are comfortable contributing to the design and evaluation of innovative solutions aimed at promoting immune tolerance.
• Think mechanistically: you are motivated by understanding how things work, not just that they work.
• Feel joy in collaboration and communicate naturally with experts across disciplines.
• Are energized by 0->1 innovations and always on the lookout for creative ways to do better.
• Want to be part of a fast-paced team working on frontier scientific and technical problems.

If you're excited about this role but don't meet every qualification, please apply. As we build, we're hiring for complementary strengths to form a high-impact team.

Merge Labs does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, family status, ancestry, citizenship, U.S. military (state and federal) and veteran status, or any other legally protected status. It is our intention that all applicants be given equal opportunity and that selection decisions are based on job related factors. We are an equal opportunity employer.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made by emailing [e-mail].