---
title: 'Director, Data Science at Formation Bio'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/director-data-science-formation-bio-boston-nx4k0qwmz6tx'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-05'
---

# Director, Data Science at Formation Bio

- **Company:** Formation Bio
- **Location:** Boston, MA / New York, NY
- **Posted:** 2026-04-16
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-05
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/formationbio/jobs/7530429

## Job description

## About Formation Bio

Formation Bio is a tech and AI driven pharma company differentiated by radically more efficient drug development.

Advancements in AI and drug discovery are creating more candidate drugs than the industry can progress because of the high cost and time of clinical trials. Recognizing that this development bottleneck may ultimately limit the number of new medicines that can reach patients, Formation Bio, founded in 2016 as TrialSpark Inc., has built technology platforms, processes, and capabilities to accelerate all aspects of drug development and clinical trials. Formation Bio partners, acquires, or in-licenses drugs from pharma companies, research organizations, and biotechs to develop programs past clinical proof of concept and beyond, ultimately helping to bring new medicines to patients. The company is backed by investors across pharma and tech, including a16z, Sequoia, Sanofi, Thrive Capital, John Doerr, Spark Capital, SV Angel Growth, and others.

You can read more at the following links:

- [Our Vision for AI in Pharma](https://www.formation.bio/blog/our-vision-for-ai-in-pharma)
- [Our Current Drug Portfolio](https://www.formation.bio/licensing-and-pipeline)
- [Our Technology & Platform](https://www.formation.bio/technology)

At Formation Bio, our values are the driving force behind our mission to revolutionize the pharma industry. Every team and individual at the company shares these same values, and every team and individual plays a key part in our mission to bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.

## About the Position

As the Director of Data Science at Formation Bio, you will be at the forefront of revolutionizing drug development through AI and advanced analytics. In this role, you'll lead crucial initiatives that directly impact our drug development portfolio, from developing sophisticated models for patient selection to creating AI-powered solutions for clinical trial optimization. You'll work at the intersection of computational biology, machine learning, and drug development, collaborating with cross-functional teams to translate complex biological data into actionable insights. This position offers a unique opportunity to shape the future of pharmaceutical development by leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies while making a meaningful impact on patient lives.

## Responsibilities

- Lead and execute complex data science projects that directly advance our drug development portfolio
- Develop and implement sophisticated models for therapeutic hypothesis evaluation, including patient stratification and biomarker identification
- Design and create AI models for modernizing clinical trial evaluations, including surrogate endpoints
- Aid in the development and training of AI agents to automate and optimize biomedical workflows
- Collaborate cross-functionally with clinical, technical, and research teams
- Present complex analytical findings to senior stakeholders, including executive leadership

## About You

Required Qualifications

- PhD in computational sciences or life sciences
- 7+ years of post-academic experience in life sciences (biotech, pharma, consulting)
- Strong programming skills, particularly in Python
- Extensive experience in multi-modal bioinformatics analysis

## Preferred Qualifications

- Proven expertise in cloud computing environments, including proficiency with tabular and/or graph databases
- Strong background in machine learning and deep learning, particularly in biological applications
- Experience with large language models (LLM)
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with engineering teams on production systems
- Strong communication skills with proven ability to present complex technical findings to senior stakeholders

Total Compensation Range: $235,000 - $307,000 Compensation Individual compensation is determined by several factors, including role scope, geographic location, and skills & experience. Your offer will reflect where you fall within the range based on these considerations. In addition to base salary, we offer equity, comprehensive benefits, and generous perks. If the posted range doesn't match your expectations, we still encourage you to apply!

Where We Hire Formation Bio is prioritizing hiring in key hubs, primarily the New York City and Boston metro areas, with a hybrid model requiring 3 days per week in office. Applicants from the Research Triangle (NC) and San Francisco Bay Area may also be considered. Please apply only if you reside in these locations or are willing to relocate.

Equal Opportunity Formation Bio is committed to building a diverse and inclusive team. We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome candidates from all backgrounds. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions), gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

## About Formation Bio

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Formation Bio is an AI-native, tech-driven pharmaceutical company that acquires and develops clinical-stage drug candidates faster and more efficiently using its proprietary technology platform.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series D)
- **Headquarters**: New York, New York, USA
- **Founded**: Year not publicly specified; founded by Ben Liu and Linhao Zhang
- **Founders**: Ben Liu (CEO & Co-Founder) and Linhao Zhang (Co-Founder)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Pharmaceuticals / Drug Development / AI in Biotech
- **Target customers**: B2B; partners include pharmaceutical companies, universities, and biotech firms that have clinical-stage assets; end customers are patients awaiting new treatments.
- **Mission or purpose statement**: "To bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently."

## Products & Services
- **AI-Native Drug Development Platform**: A proprietary, tech-driven platform that integrates patient intelligence, data surveillance, and a universal data layer to power hyper-efficient clinical development across the drug lifecycle.
- **Drug Asset Acquisition & Development**: Formation Bio acquires promising clinical-stage drug candidates from pharma, universities, and biotech, then develops them in-house using flexible financing pathways and bespoke exit strategies.
- **Clinical Operations**: In-house management of trials including patient recruitment, site management, and study monitoring.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed (private company)
- **Total Funding**: Not publicly disclosed in search results; investors include Sequoia Capital, a16z (Andreessen Horowitz), Thrive Capital, Section 32, Sam Altman, Michael Moritz, John Doerr, and others.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Sequoia Capital, a16z, Thrive Capital, Section 32, Sam Altman, Michael Moritz, John Doerr; advisors include former Pfizer CSO Mikael Dolsten, former Allergan R&D head Lawrence Olanoff, and Microsoft EVP of CoreAI Jay Parikh.
- **Growth Signals**: The team and advisors have collectively worked on 45+ approved drugs; the company is actively hiring across multiple functions (engineering, data science, clinical operations, business development) in four key hubs; has attracted top-tier tech and pharma talent.

## Competitive Advantages
- **AI-Native Model**: Unlike traditional pharma, Formation Bio is built from first principles with AI and data-driven iteration at its core, creating feedback loops that accelerate decision-making.
- **In-House Execution**: Runs trials in-house (patient recruitment, site management, monitoring) rather than outsourcing, enabling tighter control and faster cycles.
- **Cross-Industry Talent**: Bridges the best of tech and pharma, combining software engineering, data science, and AI with deep drug development expertise.
- **Flexible Deal Structures**: Offers varied financing and exit pathways for drug programs, making it a preferred partner for asset holders.

## Strategic Focus
- **Radical Efficiency**: Ruthless process improvement across the drug development lifecycle without sacrificing quality or safety.
- **Platform Scaling**: Building a scalable, tech-driven pharma company that can handle multiple drug programs simultaneously.
- **Therapeutic Breadth**: Focusing on critical unmet patient needs across a variety of therapeutic areas.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-Driven**: "The world’s hardest problems deserve the world’s best people" — employees work on transforming how medicines are created, with tangible patient impact.
- **Hybrid Culture**: Teams are hybrid based in four hubs: New York City, Boston, San Francisco Bay Area, and North Carolina’s Research Triangle.
- **Comprehensive Benefits**: Health, vision, dental insurance; 401k; pre-tax commuter benefits; short and long-term disability; life insurance.
- **Parental Leave**: 16 weeks paid for birthing parents, 12 weeks for non-birthing parents.
- **Flexible PTO**: Trust-based time off policy.
- **Professional Development**: Fireside chats with industry experts, conference passes, certification courses, internal mobility, manager training, leadership coaching.
- **Community**: Quarterly company gatherings, bi-annual company-wide retreat, Employee Resource Groups.
- **Engineering Culture**: AI-native, data-driven, first-principles thinking — a place for people who "chase excellence" and want to solve hard problems.

## Sources
1. [formation.bio](https://www.formation.bio/)
2. [formation.bio/about-us](https://www.formation.bio/about-us)
3. [formation.bio/careers](https://www.formation.bio/careers)
4. [formation.bio/our-model](https://www.formation.bio/our-model)
5. [Greenhouse job board](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/formationbio)

## Other roles at Formation Bio

- [Senior Software Engineer II, Trial Engine](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-software-engineer-ii-trial-engine-formation-bio-new-york-xmdx1ntkdnft) — New York, NY / Boston, MA / San Francisco, CA
- [Engineering Manager, Infrastructure](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-infrastructure-formation-bio-new-york-amagy5ph1aww) — New York, NY / Boston, MA / San Francisco, CA
- [Associate Director, Data Engineering](https://feeny.ai/job/associate-director-data-engineering-formation-bio-new-york-42d1v3naj1av) — New York, NY / Boston, MA / San Francisco, CA
- [Associate Director/Director, Data Governance](https://feeny.ai/job/associate-director-director-data-governance-formation-bio-boston-xx5v9a3egg60) — Boston, MA / New York, NY
- [Director/Senior Director, Product - Applied Data Science](https://feeny.ai/job/director-senior-director-product-applied-data-science-formation-bio-new-york-1jdx3r9777my) — New York, NY / Boston, MA
- [Director, Financial Reporting](https://feeny.ai/job/director-financial-reporting-formation-bio-new-york-dnjc17wg84ew) — New York, NY / Boston, MA
- [Director, People](https://feeny.ai/job/director-people-formation-bio-new-york-4mssc8y27nm2) — New York, NY / Boston, MA
- [Lead Technical Recruiter](https://feeny.ai/job/lead-technical-recruiter-formation-bio-new-york-pye3kqkgckja) — New York, NY / Boston, MA
- [Associate Director, GMP Quality](https://feeny.ai/job/associate-director-gmp-quality-formation-bio-boston-cmfdvxeszbkf) — Boston, MA / New York, NY
- [General Manager (Drug Asset Lead)](https://feeny.ai/job/general-manager-drug-asset-lead-formation-bio-boston-wxckr2ae3pm8) — Boston, MA / New York, NY