---
title: 'Quantum Resident at SandboxAQ'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/quantum-resident-sandboxaq-united-states-pqsjy7jbnda3'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-09'
---

# Quantum Resident at SandboxAQ

- **Company:** SandboxAQ
- **Location:** United States
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** remote
- **Posted:** 2026-09-01
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-09
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/sandboxaq/7157f470-0b6e-4a04-a05b-79d212d2d913

## Job description

## ABOUT SANDBOXAQ

SandboxAQ is a high-growth company delivering AI solutions that address some of the world's greatest challenges. The company’s Large Quantitative Models (LQMs) power advances in life sciences, financial services, navigation, cybersecurity, and other sectors.

We are a global team that is tech-focused and includes experts in AI, chemistry, cybersecurity, physics, mathematics, medicine, engineering, and other specialties. The company emerged from Alphabet Inc. as an independent, growth capital-backed company in 2022, funded by leading investors and supported by a braintrust of industry leaders.

At SandboxAQ, we’ve cultivated an environment that encourages creativity, collaboration, and impact. By investing deeply in our people, we’re building a thriving, global workforce poised to tackle the world's epic challenges. Join us to advance your career in pursuit of an inspiring mission, in a community of like-minded people who value entrepreneurialism, ownership, and transformative impact.

## THE OPPORTUNITY

Quantum computing is advancing quickly, and has clear relevance to the problems we work on at SandboxAQ, including high-accuracy quantum chemistry for catalysis and materials. As a Quantum Resident you will investigate this matter thoroughly. The intended output is a public technical assessment of where quantum computing stands relative to SandboxAQ's core problem areas, and, if the results warrant it, a peer-reviewed publication. This is a deliberately publication-oriented role. The work is expected to be openly publishable rather than proprietary, and you will be encouraged to present it. You will work directly with SandboxAQ's VP of Engineering and alongside our AI-simulation and catalysis teams, with substantial independence in how you approach the problem.

## KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

- Investigate and extend quantum computing methods in chemistry and their applications to Large Quantitative Models.
- Benchmark against the classical frontier, establishing where the best available classical methods remain sufficient and where they stop.
- Collaborate with SandboxAQ scientists and external academic collaborators, and translate findings for both technical and non-technical audiences.
- Publish a public technical write-up on the current status and future prospects of quantum computing, including a scientific paper if results support one.

## ESSENTIAL SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

- Enrolled in, or recently completed, a PhD in physics, chemistry, computational mathematics, electrical/computer engineering, or a related field.
- Demonstrated research experience with near-term quantum algorithms for electronic structure. For example, VQE or ADAPT-VQE, quantum-selected configuration interaction / sample-based quantum diagonalization (QSCI/SQD), or quantum Krylov / subspace diagonalization methods.
- Experience producing quantum resource estimates (circuit depth, gate counts, and measurement or shot requirements) and reasoning about what they imply for practical feasibility.
- Proficiency in Python and at least one quantum SDK (Qiskit, PennyLane, Cirq, or equivalent), with a track record of reproducible computational work.
- Evidence of independent research output, such as peer-reviewed publications or preprints, and the ability to drive a project with light day-to-day supervision.

## HIGHLY DESIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

- Working knowledge of quantum chemistry or electronic-structure software (PySCF, VASP, or similar), and of active-space and embedding methods such as DFET, DMET, or CASSCF/NEVPT2.
- Hands-on experience running circuits on real quantum hardware, including error mitigation or post-processing of noisy measurement data.
- Research on measurement complexity, shot reduction, or observable estimation.
- Familiarity with machine-learning interatomic potentials or other surrogate models trained on quantum-chemical data.
- Background in catalysis, surface chemistry, magnetism, or strongly correlated materials.

WHY JOIN US?

We offer a comprehensive and competitive benefits package designed to support your health, financial well-being, and life outside of work.

- Career Defining Work: Your work will directly accelerate the discovery of better drugs and better materials, advance human health, and enable safer and more sustainable technologies by helping customers put AI Simulation capabilities into real world use.
- Compensation: Competitive base salary, performance-based incentives or bonuses (where applicable), and equity participation.
- Benefits: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents with generous employer premium contributions, retirement savings with company matching, paid parental leave, and inclusive family-building benefits.
- Work-Life Balance: Fully remote, Flexible paid time off, company-wide seasonal breaks, and support for flexible work arrangements that enable sustainable performance.
- Learning and Growth: Opportunities for continuous learning and growth through on-the-job development, cross-functional collaboration, and access to internal learning and development programs.

## SANDBOXAQ WELCOMES ALL

We are committed to fostering a culture of belonging and respect, where diverse perspectives are actively sought and valued. Our multidisciplinary environment provides ample opportunity for continuous growth - working alongside humble, empowered, and ambitious colleagues ready to tackle epic challenges.

Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status.

Accommodations: We provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities in job application procedures for open roles. If you need such an accommodation, please let a member of our Recruiting team know.

Read: Guidance for candidates on using AI Tools in interviews https://www.sandboxaq.com/ai-in-interviews

## About SandboxAQ

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: SandboxAQ develops Large Quantitative Models (LQMs) that combine AI and quantum techniques to solve real-world challenges in drug discovery, materials, navigation, cybersecurity, and other high-impact sectors.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Late Stage; raised $1.6B total, including Series E, venture rounds, and grants)
- **Headquarters**: Palo Alto, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2021 (spun out from Alphabet in 2022)
- **Founders**: Jack Hidary (CEO); Eric Schmidt serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors

## Core Business
- **Primary Industries**: AI/Quantum software, life sciences (drug discovery), cybersecurity, financial services, navigation/defense, materials science
- **Target Customers**: B2B, serving large enterprises and government organizations in pharma, energy, defense, finance, and logistics
- **Mission**: Revolutionize industries with groundbreaking solutions at the intersection of AI and quantum technology

## Products & Services
- **AQBioSim**: AI simulation platform for accelerating molecular design and reducing failure rates in drug discovery (SaaS)
- **LQMs for Cybersecurity**: Cryptography management and quantum-safe security solutions (e.g., post-quantum cryptography, key management)
- **AI Navigation & Sensing**: Precise positioning and navigation systems resistant to jamming/spoofing, leveraging AI and quantum sensors (SaaS + hardware integration)
- **Materials & Chemistry Modeling**: LQMs that predict atomic-level properties to unlock new compounds for chemicals and materials (SaaS)
- **Financial Services LQMs**: Models for risk analysis, portfolio optimization, and fraud detection (SaaS)

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Not publicly disclosed; total funding reached $1.6 billion
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding: $1.6B (13 rounds); Annual Revenue (estimated): $9M (via disclosed financial data)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: T. Rowe Price, Eric Schmidt, Breyer Capital, Guggenheim Partners, Marc Benioff, Thomas Tull, Paladin Capital Group, Nvidia (backed via grant/award)
- **Growth Signals**:
  - Headcount: ~296 employees (+10.6% YoY)
  - Operating in 16 countries (US, Canada, UK, France, Spain, Switzerland, etc.)
  - Acquired Good Chemistry (Jan 2024) and Cryptosense (Sep 2022) to expand capabilities
  - Recent funding: $95M venture round (July 2025), additional private equity round (Feb 2026)
  - US government awarded $500M (Nvidia-backed) for finding new outcomes (likely defense/pharma contract)
  - Recognized with multiple industry awards (Fierce Innovator in Life Sciences 2025, Wash100 Award, etc.)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Quantitative AI (LQMs)**: Models that understand the physical world (molecules, materials, navigation) – distinct from purely data-driven LLMs
- **Alphabet Spinout Heritage**: Foundational technology and talent from Google’s parent company
- **Multidisciplinary Team**: Physicists, chemists, cryptographers, AI researchers – rare combination
- **Strong Government & Enterprise Ties**: Direct contracts with US defense and pharma, plus deep investor network
- **Integrated Portfolio**: One platform covering simulation, cybersecurity, and sensing – creating cross-selling opportunities

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale LQM Applications**: Expand from drug discovery into climate, energy, and defense
- **Deepen Government Partnerships**: Capitalize on $500M US award and develop mission-critical navigation/security systems
- **Build Ecosystem**: Open APIs and partnerships with cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Databricks) to embed LQMs into existing workflows
- **Talent Acquisition**: Aggressively hiring ML engineers, computational chemists, and research scientists to maintain technical lead

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Emphasizes inclusion, service leadership, and fearlessness. Described as “the most humble player in the AQ industry” with a growth mindset.
- **Remote/Hybrid Policy**: Flexible work environment; home office stipend and connectivity stipend provided; regular offsites for collaboration.
- **Benefits**: Best-in-class medical, dental, vision; 100% paid maternity/paternity leave; 401k with company match; wellness stipend; learning & development programs; flexible time off including winter break and volunteering days.
- **Engineering Culture**: Hands-on work at the frontier of AI and quantum; cross-disciplinary teams (physics, chemistry, neuroscience, cryptography); opportunity to publish research and attend conferences.
- **Growth Opportunities**: Residency program for early-career scientists; stock options; clear career progression in a fast-growing late-stage startup.

## Sources
1. [sandboxaq.com](https://www.sandboxaq.com/)
2. [sandboxaq.com/company/about-us](https://www.sandboxaq.com/company/about-us)
3. [sandboxaq.com/careers](https://www.sandboxaq.com/careers)
4. [linkedin.com/company/sandboxaq](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sandboxaq)
5. [jobs.ashbyhq.com/sandboxaq](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/sandboxaq)

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