Biochemistry Research Scientist - PhD

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark , General Catalyst , Peter Thiel , Adam D'Angelo , Larry Summers , and Jack Dorsey .

Position: Biology Research Scientist (BA, MS, PhD's)

Type: Contract

Compensation: $50–$70/hour

Location: Remote

Duration: 1–2 month minimum, extension likely

Commitment: 10–20 hours/week

Role Responsibilities

• Access primary sources such as papers and patents to verify protein target assignments against UniProt records.
• Flag and classify target assignment errors using a structured taxonomy to ensure data accuracy.
• Propose correct UniProt accessions where assignments are incorrect to enhance database reliability.
• Write concise, evidence-grounded notes explaining your reasoning to support AI drug discovery pipelines.
• Work independently and asynchronously to meet deadlines and improve data integrity.

Qualifications

Must-Have

• BA/BS with 5+ years , MS with 2+ years , or PhD with industry or drug discovery research experience in pharmacology, biochemistry, molecular biology, or chemical biology.
• Hands-on binding or functional assay experience ( SPR , TR-FRET , radioligand binding, kinase assays, GPCR functional assays, IC50/Ki/KD ).
• Currently bench-active in a research, scientist, or associate scientist role.
• Working fluency with UniProt or adjacent workflows: SAR support, HTS , target validation, biochemical profiling, or IND-enabling studies.

Preferred

• Direct experience with ChEMBL , BindingDB , or PubChem .
• Selectivity profiling or counterscreening experience.
• Familiarity with agonist/antagonist vs. activator/inhibitor distinctions.

Start Date

• Immediate start

Application Process (Takes 20–30 mins to complete)

• Upload resume
• AI interview based on your resume
• Submit form

Resources & Support

• For details about the interview process and platform information, please check: https://talent.docs.mercor.com/welcome
• For any help or support, reach out to: support@mercor.com

PS: Our team reviews applications daily. Please complete your AI interview and application steps to be considered for this opportunity.