Senior Computational Biologist, Imaging

The Opportunity

Imaging-based phenotyping of in vitro biology is at the heart of insitro's efforts to accelerate drug development. Computational biology is key to elucidating the relationship between these image-derived phenotypes and human disease and translating them into actionable outcomes.

We are looking for a computational biologist with expertise in microscopy data, including a deep understanding of cell and disease biology and fluency with state-of-the-art analysis techniques. Your expertise will help the team navigate the complexities of developing disease-relevant cell models and analyzing high-throughput phenotypic screens, ensure that the tools being developed are statistically calibrated and effective, that analyses are performed to the highest rigor, and following best practices in the broader scientific community.

In this role, you will collaborate closely with experimental biologists and machine learning scientists to help identify novel phenotypes, develop new screening paradigms, and improve our understanding of disease. You will use machine learning, statistical, and bioinformatics methods to process and analyze diverse microscopy modalities as well as other modalities, such as transcriptomics and human cohort data, in order to extract insights about disease mechanisms.

You will be part of a cross-functional team of life scientists, data scientists, bioengineers, software engineers, and machine learning scientists that strive to identify therapeutic targets and develop drugs of high efficacy and low toxicity. This role will be reporting to the Head of Computational Biology and ML-Omics . This is a hybrid position that requires you to be in our South San Francisco headquarters at least three days per week.

You will be joining a vibrant biotech startup that has many opportunities for significant impact. You will work closely with a highly talented team, learn a broad range of skills, and help shape insitro's culture, strategic direction, and outcomes. Join us, and help make a difference to patients!

Responsibilities

• Analyze image-derived features extracted from microscopy datasets from disease-relevant in vitro models to identify potential therapeutic targets from perturbation screens

• Partner with experimental biologists to design, troubleshoot, and optimize high-throughput imaging-based experiments and workflows

• Synthesize insights from multimodal analyses (microscopy, spatial proteomics, bulk/single-cell RNA-seq, human cohort data) to uncover disease mechanisms and generate therapeutic hypotheses

• Calibrate analysis tools and workflows, define performance metrics, and conduct benchmarking to select fit-for-purpose solutions

• Provide domain expertise in cell biology to guide assay development and biological interpretation of image-derived phenotypes

• Communicate findings to cross-functional stakeholders through reports, visualizations, presentations, and publications

• Identify novel disease-relevant phenotypes and propose new screening paradigms that translate to actionable program decisions

• Contribute to therapeutic target identification by linking phenotypic readouts with genetic and omics signals

About You

• Ph.D. in computational biology, systems biology, bioengineering, machine learning, or a related discipline, with 3+ years of working experience post graduation

• Hands-on experience working with microscopy data, preferably fluorescence and label-free microscopy

• An understanding of molecular biology or disease biology (e.g. neurological disorders, metabolic disorders)

• Experience with spatial proteomics or transcriptomics

• Strong programming skills and proficiency with Python scientific packages (i.e., numpy, pandas)

• Ability to communicate effectively and collaborate with people of diverse backgrounds and job functions

• Committed to writing well-commented code and documentation, and familiar with coding best practices (i.e. version control, code review)

• Publication record of meaningful contributions to high-quality work in relevant computational biology, systems biology, life sciences, or biomedical venues

Compensation & Benefits at insitro

Our target starting salary for successful US-based applicants for this role is $175,000 - $200,000. To determine starting pay, we consider multiple job-related factors including a candidate's skills, education and experience, market demand, business needs, and internal parity. We may also adjust this range in the future based on market data.

This role is eligible for participation in our Annual Performance Bonus Plan (based on company targets by role level and annual company performance) and our Equity Incentive Plan, subject to the terms of those plans and associated policies.

In addition, insitro also provides our employees:

• 401(k) plan with employer matching for contributions

• Excellent medical, dental, and vision coverage as well as mental health and well-being support

• Open, flexible vacation policy

• Paid parental leave of at least 16 weeks to support parents who give birth, and 10 weeks for a new parent (inclusive of birth, adoption, fostering, etc)

• Quarterly budget for books and online courses for self-development

• Support to attend professional conferences that are meaningful to your career growth and role's responsibilities

• New hire stipend for home office setup

• Monthly cell phone & internet stipend

• Access to free onsite baristas and daily lunch for employees who are either onsite or hybrid

• Access to a free commuter bus and ferry network that provides transport to and from our South San Francisco HQ from locations all around the Bay Area

insitro is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.

We believe diversity, equity, and inclusion need to be at the foundation of our culture. We work hard to bring together diverse teams–grounded in a wide range of expertise and life experiences–and work even harder to ensure those teams thrive in inclusive, growth-oriented environments supported by equitable company and team practices. All candidates can expect equitable treatment, respect, and fairness throughout the interview process.

Please be aware of recruitment scams: we never request payments, all recruitment communications are from @insitro.com, and if in doubt, contact us at [email protected].

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About insitro

insitro is a drug discovery and development company using machine learning (ML) and data at scale to decode biology for transformative medicines. At the core of insitro’s approach is the convergence of in-house generated multi-modal cellular data and high-content phenotypic human cohort data. We rely on these data to develop ML-driven, predictive disease models that uncover underlying biologic state and elucidate critical drivers of disease. These powerful models rely on extensive biological and computational infrastructure and allow insitro to advance novel targets and patient biomarkers, design therapeutics and inform clinical strategy. insitro is advancing a wholly owned and partnered pipeline of insights and therapeutics in neuroscience and metabolism. Since launching in 2018, insitro has raised over $700 million from top tech, biotech and crossover investors, and from collaborations with pharmaceutical partners. For more information on insitro, please visit www.insitro.com.