Associate Scientist

At Parallel Bio, we are using the immune system to unlock safer, more effective drugs. By creating access to genuine human biology in a diverse, reproducible, and scalable way we re changing the way researchers find, test, refine, and deliver these life-changing therapies.

The human immune system is the master regulator of health and disease in our bodies. Current tools used to discover drugs that target the immune system are wildly inadequate. To fix this critical gap, Parallel Bio created a human immune system in a dish to rapidly accelerate the development of new drugs and immunotherapies more likely to work in patients. This means developing drugs that are known to safely work in humans before the first patient receives the first dose and an end to needlessly destroying millions of lab animals in the pursuit of human health.

By blending this biological innovation with the latest in high-throughput lab automation and integrated data capture & analysis, we re creating a new type of biotech one that brings the advantages of cloud computing to next-generation wet lab studies.

As a biologist, joining our team means:

• Pushing forward the understanding of how the immune system functions with real-world experimentation.

• Helping create new experimental methods that can be repeated and varied from the keyboard instead of the bench.

• Learning modern data & software practices - techniques considered beyond the cutting-edge in biotech.

• Creating experiments where copies of the same organism can be held constant - either for varied treatments or repeated across replicants to drive down scientific uncertainty.

• Access to diverse populations varied by sex, age, race, medical history can be used repeatedly and repeatably.

As a technologist, joining our team means bringing the rigor and scalability of computing into the biological domain:

• Work a problem with clear benefits for humanity. This is work worth doing.

• Bring modern software and data practices to biotech, an industry still catching up on 15 years of big data tech evolution.

• The breadth of our systems is breath-taking: from low-level robotics programming to data science & visualization to AI models of immune response and everything in-between. As a small team we tend to work across these areas rather than be siloed into one of them.

• Software is a first-class product concern at Parallel Bio, not a cost-center / service organization. We operate wet labs but we ship data-as-a-product.

• Learn the intricacies of the biological computing system that is the human immune system: antibody selection and production is a complex search problem.

As part of our operations team, joining Parallel Bio means:

• Playing a key role in enabling the seamless functioning of a pioneering biotech company driving groundbreaking drug discovery.

• Supporting visionary leaders whose work is reshaping how therapies are developed and delivered to patients.

• Collaborating with a multidisciplinary team at the forefront of science, technology, and innovation.

• Gaining insight into the unique challenges and opportunities of scaling a high-impact startup.

• Contributing to a mission-driven organization focused on creating safer, more effective drugs and transforming the future of human health.

The Role

Note to candidates: The requirements listed here are an exhaustive list of useful traits but not a hard list of requirements. Candidates who don't fulfill one or more of the listed requirements but still think they are strong candidates are encouraged to apply.

As an Associate Scientist, this is a key research role at Parallel Bio, where we are pioneering a human immune system in a dish to revolutionize drug discovery. Our platform enables the rapid development of immunotherapies and other drugs that are more likely to succeed in clinical trials.

The immediate high-level goals for the person in this role are threefold:

• Support immune organoid research by executing experiments, optimizing biological assays, and analyzing data.

• Collaborate with scientists to improve platform capabilities and streamline experimental workflows.

• Assist in setting up and maintaining the San Diego lab to ensure seamless research operations.

While this is primarily a hands-on experimental role, you will work closely with scientists, automation engineers, and software engineers to advance our research efforts. You will be responsible for conducting routine experiments, troubleshooting assays, and generating high-quality data that drive key discoveries.

As part of maintaining cell cultures and experimental continuity, this role will require some weekend work on a rotating basis to feed cells and maintain cultures.

This role reports directly to Director of Platform Biology.

• Experimental Research & Data Analysis:

  • Conduct immune organoid experiments in tissue culture.

  • Perform biological assays to characterize immune responses and validate experimental outcomes.

  • Maintain detailed experimental records, data logs, and reports to ensure reproducibility.

  • Assist with troubleshooting assays and optimizing protocols for consistency and reliability.

• Lab Operations & San Diego Lab Setup:

  • Assist in setting up and optimizing the San Diego lab to ensure efficient research workflows.

  • Maintain laboratory equipment, supplies, and reagents to support seamless experimentation.

  • Collaborate with automation and software engineering teams to integrate data capture and analysis tools into experiments.

• Support for Scientists & Research Associates:

  • Work closely with scientists to execute research plans and develop new experimental approaches.

  • Provide technical guidance and troubleshooting to research associates when needed.

  • Contribute to team discussions by sharing observations and insights from experiments.

• Weekend Cell Culture Maintenance (Rotating Schedule):

  • Perform cell culture maintenance as needed to ensure experimental continuity.

  • Feed and monitor immune organoids to maintain long-term experimental integrity.

Technical Abilities

• Master s degree in Immunology, Cell Biology, Microbiology, or a related field. Or Bachelor s degree with 2 years of industry experience. Job title & compensation will commensurate with experience.

• Experience with tissue culture, 2D/3D cell models, or immune cell assays.

• Hands-on expertise in biological assays, flow cytometry, ELISA, qPCR, or similar techniques.

• Experience working in a startup, biotech, or pharma research setting is a plus.

• Strong data analysis skills and familiarity with Excel, GraphPad, or statistical software (Python/R) is a plus.

Organizational Abilities

• Strong attention to detail and ability to follow experimental protocols precisely.

• Ability to multitask and manage time efficiently in a fast-paced research environment.

• Strong problem-solving skills and willingness to iterate on experimental challenges.

Location

• San Diego, CA (Hybrid model: in-person lab work with some flexibility for remote collaboration).

Compensation Range: $90K - $110K