
UK Ops & Programme Manager at Adaptyv (London, United Kingdom)
Adaptyv· London, United Kingdom·
Role details
Job description
Adaptyv is building an automated lab that lets AI agents run biology experiments.
We're entering the era of agentic science where AI models can now design novel proteins, propose hypotheses, and iterate on experimental results. But they can't run the experiments themselves - that's still a manual, months-long process. We're building the infrastructure that gives AI agents access to the physical world.
We are one of the fastest growing biotech companies, trusted by leading biopharmas, frontier AI labs, and the techbio companies pushing the field forward. This is a rare chance to help advance some of the most important work happening in biotech today.
Our automated lab is powered by a deep software + hardware stack: lab instruments worth millions of USD reverse-engineered into API-controllable hardware, dozens of devices orchestrated through complex workflows, full observability on everything that happens in the lab, processing pipelines for messy physical-world data, and AI systems that troubleshoot production results and accelerate assay development.
We’re growing rapidly and are hiring for talented people to scale and support the massive demand for AI-driven wet lab experimentation.
ABOUT THE ROLE
Adaptyv is opening a London lab in 2026. Beyond running experiments, we want it to become an important part of the UK life-science ecosystem: giving biotech companies and researchers access to high-throughput protein production and characterisation, running work for partners such as Anthropic and Boltz, and building a strong local community around protein engineering.
You will join as one of the first UK hires, working closely with the founders, the Head of UK Operations, and the team in Lausanne.
You will own much of the customer-, partner-, and community-facing operation in the UK. That means onboarding customers, running strategic programmes, coordinating events and partnerships, and making sure the London operation is visible, organised, and easy to work with.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
- Own UK customer operations. Support customers from onboarding through experiment submission and delivery of results, working closely with our scientific and commercial teams in Lausanne.
- Run strategic programmes and partnerships. Own milestones, reporting, partner reviews, deliverables, and the operating cadence behind our UK collaborations. Keep multiple stakeholders aligned and make sure commitments turn into action.
- Build Adaptyv's UK community presence. Organise competitions, hackathons, meetups, workshops, and conference activities together with our broader community team.
- Drive UK marketing and communications. Coordinate announcements, event content, case studies, customer stories, and other material that builds awareness around Adaptyv and the London lab.
- Build the operating systems behind your work. Create lightweight processes, automate repetitive workflows, and continuously improve how customers, partners, and internal teams work together.
- Pick up whatever else needs ownership. As one of the first people on the ground, your scope will evolve quickly as the London operation grows.
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR
- You have a life-sciences background. A degree in biology, biochemistry, bioengineering, or a related field is strongly preferred. You will work closely with scientists and regularly discuss protein engineering experiments and assays.
- You have a track record of running complex projects. This could come from operations, programme management, partnerships, a startup, an accelerator, a VC fund, or a scientific organisation. We care more about what you have owned than your title or years of experience.
- You are exceptionally organised. You can manage customers, partners, deadlines, events, and internal stakeholders in parallel without losing track of the details.
- You communicate clearly. You can write concise partner updates, run effective meetings, and represent Adaptyv confidently with customers and at events.
- You operate with high ownership. You are comfortable with ambiguity, figure out what needs to happen, and drive it through to completion.
- You use AI as part of how you work. We use tools like Claude Code and our own software throughout Adaptyv, including for operations work. We expect you to be comfortable using AI to move faster and improve how work gets done.
- You are in London. This is an on-site role. You are already based there or ready to move.
DETAILS
- Location: London, UK — on-site
- Type: Full-time
- Start: As soon as possible
- Target lab opening: 2026
Application deadline
We are reviewing applicants on a rolling basis.
Why work at Adaptyv
- Culture & Values: Emphasizes first‑principles thinking, data‑driven decision‑making, an action‑oriented mindset, and strong work ethic. The team is composed of talented engineers from molecular biology, lab automation, software engineering, and machine learning adaptyvbio.com/careers
- Location & Flexibility: Headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. Most roles offer hybrid or remote arrangements (within Switzerland/Europe), with some roles listed as Lausanne/Hybrid/Remote adaptyvbio.com/careers
- Perks & Environment: A chance to shape the infrastructure of protein engineering — building revolutionary technologies in synthetic biology and lab automation. The team has strong academic and startup roots (EPFL, Harvard, YC). Open roles include Software Engineers, AI/ML Engineers, Lab Automation Engineers, Scientists (Protein Expression, Antibody Developability, Cell-Based Assays), and Operations roles.
- Open Positions: 30 roles across software, biology, lab automation, and business development as of April 2026 adaptyvbio.com/careers