Scientist I, Platform Development and Antibody Screening
About The Position
Xaira is an innovative biotech startup focused on leveraging AI to transform drug discovery and development. The company is leading the development of generative AI models to design protein and antibody therapeutics, enabling the creation of medicines against historically hard-to-drug molecular targets. It is also developing foundation models for biology and disease to enable better target elucidation and patient stratification. Collectively, these technologies aim to continually enable the identification of novel therapies and to improve success in drug development. Xaira is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, and London. About the Role We are seeking a driven Scientist and experimentalist who combines strong hands-on molecular biology skills with a creative, critical, and builder-oriented mindset. This role is focused on assisting in the design, construction, and iteration of novel screening platforms and experimental workflows that enable biological discovery at scale. The ideal candidate is a self-starter who enjoys working in ambiguous problem spaces, thinks deeply about experimental design, and takes ownership of turning early ideas into robust, reproducible systems. You will work collaboratively with other teams, including automation, engineering, and computation, to invent new ways of generating high-quality biological data.
Requirements
- PhD in Molecular Biology, Bioengineering, Biochemistry, or a related field with 1+ years of industry experience, or
- B.S. or M.S. with 8-10 years of relevant industry or applied research experience
- Prior work on platform, workflow, or method development, especially in exploratory or early-stage settings (see examples under Bonus Skills)
- Experience with antibody discovery and engineering workflows, including panning, enrichment, or display-based screening approaches
- Experience with assay development, optimization, and experimental troubleshooting
- Strong hands-on experience in molecular cloning and DNA manipulation
- Experience with cell-line engineering (e.g. E. coli, yeast, mammalian or related systems)
- Demonstrated ability to work independently, think critically, and drive conclusive experiments
- Strong organizational skills and attention to experimental detail
Nice To Haves
- Experience with functional antibody screening or protein–protein interaction assays
- Familiarity with high-throughput or semi-automated screening systems
- Experience working with data-rich experimental systems
- Comfort operating in fast-moving, collaborative, and partially undefined problem spaces
- Experience in one or more of the following areas would be a plus: Spatial biology technologies (e.g. spatial transcriptomics, in situ or imaging-based assays)
- Single-cell technologies, including single-cell sequencing or high-content single-cell assays
- Microarray-based assays or other multiplexed screening formats
- Microfluidics, particularly for screening, assay miniaturization, or single-cell applications
- High-content imaging or phenotypic screening
- Experience studying or manipulating cell-internal signaling pathways (e.g. receptor signaling, transcriptional regulation, immune signaling, stress responses, or related pathways)
- Protein expression, secretion, or trafficking assays
Responsibilities
- Develop novel antibody screening technologies and experimental platforms, from early proof-of-concept through scalable, robust workflows
- Design, implement, and optimize screening assays, including biochemical, molecular, and cell-based readouts
- Assist multidisciplinary platform development efforts as a biochemical expert through microbial and mammalian cell line engineering (e.g. cloning, genome editing, expression optimization)
- Apply data-driven and critical thinking approaches to troubleshoot, refine, and improve workflows, enhancing throughput, robustness, and interpretability
- Clearly document experimental workflows, present results, and contribute to shared platform standards while maintaining flexibility for rapid exploration
- Collaborate closely with cross-functional partners (automation, engineering, computation) to integrate biology, data, and technology into cohesive systems
Benefits
- We offer a competitive compensation and benefits package, seeking to provide an open, flexible, and friendly work environment to empower employees and provide them with a platform to develop their long-term careers.
- A Summary of Benefits is available for all applicants.
- We offer a competitive package that includes base salary, bonus, and equity.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
