💼 About This Role

You'll join the Peptide Chemistry team to drive peptide drug discovery projects at the intersection of empirical medicinal chemistry and Calico's proprietary Machine Learning platform. Your work will accelerate optimization of therapeutic peptides through rapid design-make-test cycles, contributing to a world-class synthetic engine. This role offers the chance to collaborate cross-functionally with ML scientists, chemists, and biologists on cutting-edge aging research.

🎯 What You'll Do

• Lead peptide drug discovery campaigns from hit identification to IND-enabling studies
• Onboard and optimize novel chemistries for high-throughput automated peptide synthesis
• Collaborate with biology, software, automation, assay, and pharmacology teams
• Mentor junior scientists and manage external collaborations with CROs

📋 Requirements

• Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry, Peptide Chemistry, or related discipline with 0-2 years industry experience
• Experience in peptide hit discovery, SAR campaigns, ADMET optimization, and formulation
• High proficiency in automated synthesis, purification (HPLC, Flash, SPE), and characterization (LCMS, NMR)
• Ability to implement diverse chemistries including backbone-modifications, macrocyclization, stapling, and bioconjugation

✨ Nice to Have

• Experience with organic synthesis including transition metal catalysis and non-canonical amino acids
• Integration of automation, software, and data science into chemistry workflows
• Knowledge of ML-design principles for peptide therapeutics

🎁 Benefits & Perks

• 💰 Annual cash bonuses (two per year)
• 🏥 Health insurance (standard Alphabet package)
• 📈 401(k) matching (typical tech company)
• 🍽️ Onsite meals (South San Francisco campus)
• 🧪 Research resources (access to advanced ML and automation tools)

📨 Hiring Process

Estimated timeline: 2-4 weeks · AI estimate

1. 1Recruiter Phone Screen· 30 min
2. 2Technical Interview (Peptide Chemistry)· 60 min
3. 3Virtual Onsite (multiple interviews)· 4 hours