Research Associate II, R&D Chemistry

About the role

We envision a world where we continuously, sustainably, and affordably improve human life with synthetic biology. Our proprietary set of enzymes and our manufacturing approach enables the production of thousands of amino acids that were previously too difficult and expensive to make. These "noncanonical" amino acids that we make are already catalyzing the creation of revolutionary and innovative products that are good for people and the planet. Our technology outperforms traditional manufacturing approaches by 10-100x across the board. We already sell products to Big 10 Pharmaceutical companies, and our product family includes the key components of multi-billion dollar blockbuster drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro. We are a diverse, passionate, interdisciplinary team that finds joy in building something new that leaves the world better than we found it. We strive to always learn and improve and have a deep desire to capitalize on our creativity and be exceptional at what we do. We're seeking a sharp, meticulous RA for our R&D team. In this role, you'll be conducting hands-on experiments to support early-stage research and help bring our work at laboratory scale to manufacturing scale. Your focus will be running and optimizing chemical reactions, performing work-up and purification of samples, and refining workflows for reaction scale-up. The R&D RA will report to and receive day-to-day guidance from one of our R&D Scientists. If being a significant contributor on a fast-paced, innovative R&D team sounds exciting to you, we definitely want to hear from you. This is a full-time, non-exempt, on-site role in Berkeley, CA. At this time, we're only able to consider applicants local to the area.

Responsibilities

• Plan and conduct experiments to optimize chemical synthesis reactions, biocatalysis reactions, and sample work-up to support process development.
• Run chemical and biocatalysis reactions to produce experimental material in support of R&D projects.
• Use analytical methods (e.g. HPLC, MS) and data analysis tools to analyze data, interpret results, and troubleshoot reactions and processes.
• Work independently and as part of an interdisciplinary team.
• Keep meticulous records.
• Prepare project updates and present progress at internal meetings.

Requirements

• Bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering, Organic Chemistry, or related field.
• 1-2 years of experience working in an industry setting.
• Hands-on experience with running a variety of chemical reactions at different scales (milligram to gram scale) and analytical techniques (e.g., HPLC, MS).
• Hands-on experience with biocatalysis is a plus.
• Essential traits
• Detail-oriented: ensure experimental accuracy, reproducibility, and data integrity.
• Analytical problem-solver: able to translate complex topics into actionable insights.
• Collaborative: work as part of an interdisciplinary team towards common objectives.
• Communicative: able to provide clear updates on project progress to support decision-making.

Benefits

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