Senior / Engineer II, AI Lab Research Engineer

Lila Sciences; Cambridge (MA); Hybrid; USD 148,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, and Vision Coverage

Flexible Time Off

Paid Parental Leave

Job summary

Lila Sciences in Cambridge, MA is pioneering the first scientific superintelligence platform. They seek individuals with a strong background in machine learning and a quantitative discipline. Responsibilities include developing decision-making systems and collaborating across scientific fields.

With a competitive base salary ranging from $148,000 to $240,000, Lila offers comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, and generous time off. Join a team committed to transforming science with cutting-edge AI solutions.

Qualifications

• Strong background in machine learning and one domain of science.
• Proficient in modern ML frameworks and scalable solution implementations.
• Experience in designing benchmarks for scientific tasks.

Responsibilities

• Develop systems for sequential decision-making and multi-step reasoning.
• Collaborate across disciplines interfacing with simulations and lab systems.
• Evaluate and measure capability towards scientific goals.

Skills

Machine Learning

Computational Sciences

Collaboration

Education

PhD or Masters in a quantitative discipline

Tools

PyTorch

TensorFlow

JAX

Job description

Lila Sciences is the world’s first scientific superintelligence platform and autonomous lab for life, chemistry, and materials science. We are pioneering a new age of boundless discovery by building the capabilities to apply AI to every aspect of the scientific method. We are introducing scientific superintelligence to solve humankind’s greatest challenges, enabling scientists to bring forth solutions in human health, climate, and sustainability at a pace and scale never experienced before. Learn more about this mission at www.lila.ai.

At Lila, we are uniquely cross‑functional and collaborative. We are actively reimagining the way teams work together and communicate. Therefore, we seek individuals with an inclusive mindset and a diversity of thought. Our teams thrive in unstructured and creative environments. All voices are heard because we know that experience comes in many forms, skills are transferable, and passion goes a long way.

If this sounds like an environment you’d love to work in, even if you only have some of the experience listed below, please apply.

What You’ll Be Building

• Agentic AI for science: Systems that perform sequential decision‑making and multi‑step reasoning to solve domain‑specific problems.
• Workflow/code generation: From natural language intent to typed, executable steps for lab instruments.
• Evaluation & reliability: Benchmarks, test suites, and telemetry to measure capability and quantify progress toward scientific goals.

What You’ll Need To Succeed

• PhD or Masters in a quantitative discipline (e.g., Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics, Engineering) with a strong background in machine learning and one domain of science (e.g., biology or materials science).
• Strong grasp of LLMs and agent architectures (planning, tool use, structured function calling, code generation) and how to adapt them to domains.
• Proficiency in modern ML frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX) and experience implementing scalable solutions for complex tasks.
• Comfort collaborating across disciplines and interfacing with simulations and real lab systems.

Bonus Points For

• Building long‑horizon agents or RL for control/decision‑making; experience with model‑based or offline RL.
• Designing domain‑specific benchmarks and evaluation harnesses for complex scientific tasks.
• Digital‑twin development, calibration, and sim‑to‑real transfer.
• Publications or open‑source contributions in AI for science (especially publications in top‑tier conferences like NeurIPS, ICML, AAAI, ICLR).

Location

San Francisco, CA or Cambridge, MA (Hybrid and On‑Site available depending on team needs).

Compensation

We offer competitive base compensation with bonus potential and generous early‑stage equity. Your final offer will reflect your background, expertise, and expected impact. Expected Base Salary Range: $148,000 USD – $240,000 USD.

U.S. Benefits: Full‑time U.S. employees receive a comprehensive benefits program including medical, dental, and vision coverage; employer‑paid life and disability insurance; flexible time off with generous company‑wide holidays; paid parental leave; an educational assistance program; commuter benefits, including bike share memberships for office‑based employees; and a company subsidized lunch program.

International Benefits: Full‑time employees outside the U.S. receive a comprehensive benefits program tailored to their region. USD salary ranges apply only to U.S.-based positions; international salaries are set to local market.

About LILA

Lila Sciences is building Scientific Superintelligence™ to solve humankind's greatest challenges. We believe science is the most inspiring frontier for AI. Rather than hard‑coding expert knowledge into tools, LILA builds systems that can learn for themselves. LILA combines advanced AI models with proprietary AI Science Factory™ instruments into an operating system for science that executes the entire scientific method autonomously, accelerating discovery at unprecedented speed, scale, and impact across medicine, materials, and energy. Learn more at www.lila.ai.

We’re All In

Lila Sciences is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.