---
title: 'Senior Scientist, Analytical Chemistry at Lila Sciences'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-scientist-analytical-chemistry-lila-sciences-cambridge-2v7jb5cckh7f'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-11-06'
---

# Senior Scientist, Analytical Chemistry at Lila Sciences

- **Company:** Lila Sciences
- **Location:** Cambridge, MA
- **Compensation:** $148k–$198k
- **Posted:** 2026-03-25
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-11-06
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/lilasciences/jobs/4192713009

## Job description

## Your Impact at LILA

The Senior Scientist, Analytical Chemistry will develop and deploy advanced analytical and characterization strategies to support Discovery Chemistry efforts across Lila’s platform, with a focus on enabling the rapid design, synthesis, screening, and optimization of small molecules and related molecular matter. This scientist will play a key role in generating high-quality, information-rich experimental data that informs chemistry decisions and accelerates platform learning.

Working closely with Discovery Chemistry, automation, AI/computational, and screening teams, this role will establish and scale multimodal characterization workflows that go beyond traditional analytical chemistry approaches. The Senior Scientist will help build an integrated analytical capability spanning compound characterization, reaction monitoring, molecular profiling, and high-throughput data generation to support fast and iterative design–make–test–analyze cycles.

This role will be critical to shaping Lila’s next-generation discovery engine by combining deep expertise in analytical chemistry with high-throughput experimentation, multimodal data generation, AI-enabled workflows.

## What You'll Be Building

- Develop, optimize, and implement analytical and multimodal characterization workflows to support Discovery Chemistry programs and molecular discovery campaigns.
- Support the design, synthesis, screening, and optimization of small molecules by delivering rapid, reliable, and information-rich analytical data.
- Lead analytical method development for compound identification, purity assessment, impurity profiling, reaction monitoring, and molecular characterization using techniques such as liquid chromatography, mass spectroscopy, NMR, and complementary orthogonal methods.
- Build characterization strategies that extend beyond traditional analytical methods, incorporating multimodal measurements that provide deeper insight into molecular identity, reaction outcomes, physicochemical properties, and structure–function relationships.
- Partner closely with Discovery Chemistry and screening teams to support high-throughput screening and high-throughput experimentation workflows, including rapid sample analysis, reaction triage, and compound profiling.
- Collaborate with automation and platform teams to integrate analytical instrumentation and data pipelines into robotics-enabled and scalable discovery workflows.
- Work closely with AI and computational teams to ensure analytical datasets are structured, interoperable, and useful for model development, closed-loop learning, and iterative molecule design.
- Establish robust workflows for reaction monitoring, in-process analytics, final compound quality assessment, and characterization of complex mixtures or intermediates.
- Troubleshoot analytical and characterization challenges related to sample preparation, instrumentation, method robustness, data interpretation, and workflow integration.
- Contribute to the development of platform-level capabilities for data-rich molecular discovery, including scalable characterization pipelines, method standardization, and best practices for analytical rigor.

## What You’ll Need to Succeed

- PhD in Analytical Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemical Biology, or a related scientific discipline with 5–8+ years of relevant industry or high-performance research experience.
- Deep expertise in analytical chemistry and molecular characterization in support of chemistry-driven discovery efforts.
- Strong hands-on experience with key analytical techniques for small molecule analysis.
- Demonstrated experience developing analytical methods for compound characterization, reaction monitoring, impurity analysis, and purity assessment.
- Experience supporting Discovery Chemistry, medicinal chemistry, synthetic chemistry, or other molecule-focused R&D environments.
- Strong understanding of how analytical data informs compound progression, screening decisions, reaction optimization, and molecular design.
- Experience working with or supporting high-throughput workflows, including rapid analytical turnaround in fast-paced research settings.
- Ability to solve complex analytical problems independently and work effectively across interdisciplinary teams spanning chemistry, screening, automation, and computational sciences.
- Strong documentation, communication, and data interpretation skills, with a commitment to rigor, reproducibility, and scientific quality.

Bonus Points For

- Experience with multimodal characterization approaches that combine orthogonal measurements to generate deeper insight into molecular systems and discovery workflows.
- Experience supporting high-throughput screening, reaction screening, or automated discovery platforms.
- Familiarity with analytical workflows integrated with robotics, liquid handlers, autosamplers, or other automation-enabled laboratory systems.
- Experience working in AI-enabled or highly data-driven R&D environments where experimental data is used to drive predictive modeling or closed-loop optimization.
- Knowledge of characterization approaches that extend beyond traditional compound QC, including molecular profiling, reaction analytics, and property-focused measurements.
- Familiarity with data systems such as ELNs, LIMS, and software tools used to manage and analyze large analytical datasets.
- Ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving, innovative environment with evolving platform needs and cross-functional priorities.
- Strong scientific curiosity and interest in building next-generation analytical capabilities for molecular discovery.

## Compensation

We offer competitive base compensation with bonus potential and generous early-stage equity. Your final offer will reflect your background, expertise, and expected impact.

U.S. Benefits. Full-time U.S. employees receive a comprehensive benefits program including medical, dental, and vision coverage; employer-paid life and disability insurance; flexible time off with generous company wide holidays; paid parental leave; an educational assistance program; commuter benefits, including bike share memberships for office based employees; and a company subsidized lunch program.

International Benefits. Full-time employees outside the U.S. receive a comprehensive benefits program tailored to their region. USD salary ranges apply only to U.S.-based positions; international salaries are set to local market.

Expected Base Salary Range $148,000—$198,000 USD

## About LILA

Lila Sciences is building Scientific Superintelligence™ to solve humankind's greatest challenges. We believe science is the most inspiring frontier for AI. Rather than hard-coding expert knowledge into tools, LILA builds systems that can learn for themselves.

LILA combines advanced AI models with proprietary AI Science Factory™ instruments into an operating system for science that executes the entire scientific method autonomously, accelerating discovery at unprecedented speed, scale, and impact across medicine, materials, and energy. Learn more at www.lila.ai.

Guided by our core values of truth, trust, curiosity, grit, and velocity, we move with startup speed while tackling problems of historic importance. If this sounds like an environment you'd love to work in, even if you don't meet every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply.

We’re All In

Lila Sciences is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Information you provide during your application process will be handled in accordance with our [Candidate Privacy Policy](https://www.lila.ai/candidate-privacy-policy-notice).

A Note to Agencies

Lila Sciences does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Lila Sciences or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Lila Science’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Lila Sciences, and Lila Sciences will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

## About Lila Sciences

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Lila Sciences is building the world’s first Scientific Superintelligence platform and autonomous lab, using AI to autonomously generate hypotheses, design and run experiments, and learn from results in real time across life sciences, chemistry, materials, energy, and defense.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Privately Held) – Series A, Seed, and Grant funding rounds
- **Headquarters**: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
- **Founded**: Not publicly available (first funding round was Seed in March 2025)
- **Founders**: Not publicly available (founded within Flagship Pioneering’s ecosystem)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: AI-powered scientific discovery and autonomous laboratory platforms
- **Target customers**: B2B – research organizations, biotech, pharmaceutical, energy, materials, aerospace, and defense companies
- **Mission**: “Scientific Superintelligence to solve humankind’s greatest challenges” – accelerating discovery across medicine, materials, energy, and defense

## Products & Services
- **LILA Platform (Scientific Superintelligence)**: An AI model and operating system that autonomously executes the entire scientific method – generating hypotheses, designing experiments, running them in physical labs, and learning from results in real time.
- **AI Science Factory™ Instruments**: Proprietary hardware and robotics that serve as the “body” of the platform, enabling automated experimentation at scale.
- **Domain-specific applications**: Tailored solutions for biotech (drug discovery, protein engineering), therapeutics (mRNA, antibodies, cell therapies), energy & environment (clean fuels, catalysis, critical minerals), advanced materials, chemicals, aerospace & defense, and oil & gas.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Not disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total funding – USD $550.7M (as of LinkedIn data)
  - Seed Round (March 2025): $200M led by Flagship Pioneering
  - Series A (September 2025): $235M led by Braidwell and Collective Global Management
  - Series A (November 2025): $115M led by NVentures (NVIDIA)
  - Grant (January 2026): $671,400 led by ARIA
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Flagship Pioneering, NVIDIA (NVentures), Braidwell, Collective Global Management, ARIA
- **Growth Signals**: Named #25 on the 2026 CNBC Disruptor 50 List; headcount of 308 employees (monthly growth +10.6%); 122 active job postings; operates in 6 countries (US, UK, Canada, Poland, Spain, Germany)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proprietary AI model** that consistently outperforms other models across scientific domains in complex analysis and reasoning.
- **Autonomous physical labs** that close the loop between AI hypothesis generation and real-world experimentation.
- **“Team of Teams” operating model** enabling startup speed at scale while maintaining radical transparency and high trust.
- **General platform approach** (inspired by Rich Sutton’s “Bitter Lesson”) rather than narrow domain-specific tools, allowing broad applicability.

## Strategic Focus
- Accelerating discovery across medicine, materials, energy, and defense
- Scaling the autonomous science platform to more industries and use cases
- Building “Scientific Superintelligence” that can tackle humanity’s greatest challenges
- Continued investment in AI research, robotics, and lab automation

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Emphasizes velocity, trust, curiosity, truth, and grit. “Think freely, prove precisely.” A high-trust, mission-driven environment where scientists and engineers work side by side.
- **Remote/Hybrid/Office**: Roles are listed in Cambridge, MA; San Francisco, CA; and London, UK. Physical lab presence suggests significant on-site work, but some roles may offer flexibility. Policy not explicitly stated.
- **Notable perks/engineering culture**: Opportunity to work at the frontier of AI and scientific discovery; collaboration with world-renowned experts; access to cutting-edge robotics and AI infrastructure; strong emphasis on learning and teaching (“generous teachers and eager learners”).

## Sources
1. [lila.ai](https://www.lila.ai/)
2. [lila.ai/about](https://www.lila.ai/about)
3. [lila.ai/open-roles](https://www.lila.ai/open-roles)
4. [LinkedIn - Lila Sciences](https://www.linkedin.com/company/lila-sciences)
5. [Greenhouse Job Board](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/lilasciences/jobs/4246302009)

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