AI Biologist - Proteomics

AI Biologist - Proteomics

Latch builds rigorous scientific benchmarks (benchmarks.bio) for AI agents across biology. We work with frontier labs and pharma to measure whether agents can handle real biological workflows: the messy, multi-layer reasoning that matters in the field.

We’re seeking an AI Biologist to join our Proteomics team, pushing what AI can achieve across proteomics, lipidomics, and metabolomics.

About the Role. You will be the scientific authority on ground truth, testing whether agents can reason like an expert mass spectrometrist. AI agents today struggle to interrogate raw mass spec data, separate real biological signal from artifacts of sample prep, instrument behavior, and processing, and reach conclusions an expert would stand behind. You will work with software engineers and scientists to build the tasks and datasets behind our proteomics benchmarks, and over time lipidomics and metabolomics. Your judgment will set the standard agent outputs are held to, including:

Build the task

• Define what expert reasoning looks like for a mass spec question, and write gold-standard answers with the rationale an experienced mass spectrometrist would defend

• Design realistic scenarios across the workflow: sample prep, acquisition, identification, quantification, and biological interpretation

• Curate mass spec datasets across proteomics, lipidomics, and metabolomics, alongside antibody-based and sequencing data where relevant

• Partner with software engineers to turn your judgment into new workflows

Set the hard calls

• Test whether agents can tell true biological signal from batch effects, contamination, poor identifications, or processing artifacts

• Adjudicate ambiguous results: decide what the data supports, what it doesn’t, and which experiment would settle the question

Judge the agent

• Interrogate agent reasoning step by step, and challenge conclusions that sound right but wouldn’t survive lab meeting or peer review

• Pinpoint where agents go wrong, what an expert would do instead, and what evidence would change the call

• Score agent confidence, rewarding explicit uncertainty over overconfident calls

Requirements

• PhD in proteomics, analytical chemistry, biochemistry, or a related field

• Hands-on mass spectrometry experience with first-hand data analysis and a publication record

• Mass spec experience beyond proteomics alone: lipidomics or metabolomics strongly preferred

• Strong command of experimental design and statistics

• AI-ready from day one: daily use of Claude, Cursor, or similar agents, with the judgment to spot where model reasoning is technically correct but scientifically unsound

• Confidence to overrule an AI agent when the evidence demands it, and the openness to update when shown wrong

• Bonus: protein sequencing or antibody experience

Culture. We practice radical transparency: you’ll know how the company is doing, what’s working, and what isn’t. It’ll always be us against the problem, never each other. We’re opinionated but respectful, and we bring solutions with our problems. You decide how you work; we judge the output. We use AI constantly, so what we reward is original expert judgment, not AI output passed off as your own. You’ll start on the bench that fits your expertise and can move across teams as you build a track record. People who do well here and bring leadership experience can move quickly into senior roles. Outside of work, we have company outings most months, team off-sites, a Latch run club, cycling, boxing, ice skating, and soccer. Feel free to add to the list.

Compensation & Logistics

• Contract: 1099 (or W-8BEN internationally), no end date

• Pay: guaranteed for weeks 1-4 while you ramp, then paid per certified task. Most people in this position earn $120K-$180K+ (uncapped upside); certify twice the tasks/week, earn twice the pay that week.

• Commitment: full-time, on your own schedule. Most of the team works 40+ hours a week.

• Meetings: a few pod check-ins a week. The rest of your time is yours.

• Location: remote (anywhere), hybrid, or onsite in SF. We prefer onsite.

• Onsite perks: catered lunch and dinner daily, a waterfront office in Mission Bay, and monthly parking when available

• Work authorization: US citizens, permanent residents, and OPT holders. We can’t support STEM OPT extensions or sponsorship.

Interview Process

We move fast: about 2-3 weeks from your first call, to offer.

• Intro Screen - Latch Talent Team

• Take-Home Project - HackerRank

• Technical Interview - Member of Technical Staff

• Culture Interview - C-Suite

• Offer