Director, Machine Learning, Virtual Cell Initiative

Arc Institute

Director of Machine Learning at Arc Institute, advancing predictive models in the Virtual Cell Initiative. Leading interdisciplinary teams to maximize biological insights and drug target identification.

Posted 6/24/2026full-timePalo Alto • California • 🇺🇸 United StatesLead💰 $380,000 - $420,000 per yearWebsite

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

PyTorchTensorflow

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Lead/build a team of 6 ML research scientists and engineers augmented with undergrad/masters/PhD students to contribute to the development of a state-of-the-art foundation model and agentic framework for understanding how cells respond to perturbations.
Work in an active learning loop with Arc’s wet lab scientists to shape the world's largest and most diverse set of single cell training data across many cell contexts.
Collaborate closely with other research groups to integrate genomics, functional track,and omics data more broadly beyond scRNA-seq data and Perturb-seq
Stay up to date on the latest in frontier ML research and pioneer new architectures and approaches.
The ultimate goal is to build a high utility virtual cell model for use by biologists worldwide. We publish our breakthroughs to widely accelerate scientific progress and partner with some of the biggest names in AI.
Commit to a collaborative and inclusive team environment, sharing expertise and mentoring others.
Attract the very best talent in the world to support VCI initiative goals

Requirements

What you’ll need

PhD in Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Machine Learning, or a related field.
Minimum of 5 years of experience working in/with machine learning, well versed in frameworks such as Pytorch, TensorFlow, JAX, etc.
Proven experience leading research teams in a fast paced, multi-disciplinary environment.
Experience with or strong interest in biology with ability to communicate and collaborate successfully with biologists and pure ML engineers.
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with a strong track record of presentations and publications.

Benefits

Comp & perks

🌐 Worldwide ❌ Jobs You've Hidden ⭐️ Saved Jobs ✅ Applied Jobs ✉️ Email Alerts 👤 Account Arc Institute Website LinkedIn All Job Openings 11 - 50 employees Arc Institute is a new scientific institution that conducts curiosity-driven basic science and technology development.Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Arc is a non-profit organization founded on the belief that many important research programs will be enabled by new academic models. Arc operates in partnership with Stanford University, UCSF, and UC Berkeley.As individuals, Arc researchers collaborate across diverse disciplines to study complex diseases, including cancer, neurodegeneration, and immune dysfunction. As an organization, Arc strives to enable long-term research agendas by betting on people rather than projects, and making it easier to invent and deploy new technologies at scale.Together, our mission is to accelerate scientific progress, understand the root causes of disease, and narrow the gap between discoveries and impact on patients. Director, Machine Learning, Virtual Cell Initiative 🔥 1 minute ago 🏢 Palo Alto – Onsite 💵 $380k - $420k / year ⏰ Full Time 🔴 Lead 🤖 Machine Learning Engineer PyTorch Tensorflow Apply Now Find Hiring Managers Customize resume + cover letter Report problem ☆ Save ☑️ Mark as applied ❌ Hide 📋 Description
Lead/build a team of 6 ML research scientists and engineers augmented with undergrad/masters/PhD students to contribute to the development of a state-of-the-art foundation model and agentic framework for understanding how cells respond to perturbations.
Work in an active learning loop with Arc’s wet lab scientists to shape the world's largest and most diverse set of single cell training data across many cell contexts.
Collaborate closely with other research groups to integrate genomics, functional track,and omics data more broadly beyond scRNA-seq data and Perturb-seq
Stay up to date on the latest in frontier ML research and pioneer new architectures and approaches.
The ultimate goal is to build a high utility virtual cell model for use by biologists worldwide. We publish our breakthroughs to widely accelerate scientific progress and partner with some of the biggest names in AI.
Commit to a collaborative and inclusive team environment, sharing expertise and mentoring others.
Attract the very best talent in the world to support VCI initiative goals 🎯 Requirements
PhD in Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Machine Learning, or a related field.
Minimum of 5 years of experience working in/with machine learning, well versed in frameworks such as Pytorch, TensorFlow, JAX, etc.
Proven experience leading research teams in a fast paced, multi-disciplinary environment.
Experience with or strong interest in biology with ability to communicate and collaborate successfully with biologists and pure ML engineers.
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with a strong track record of presentations and publications. Apply Now 📊 Check your resume score for this job Improve your chances of getting an interview by checking your resume score before you apply. Check Resume Score Similar Jobs Director, Machine Learning Engineering 🕒 June 6 GEICO 10,000+ employees 💸 Finance Website LinkedIn All Job Openings Director for Runtime Intelligence at GEICO, leading AI/ML strategies and development of intelligent systems. Collaborating with executives to deliver innovative, personalized customer experiences across platforms. 🏢 Palo Alto – Onsite 💵 $150k - $300k / year ⏰ Full Time 🔴 Lead 🤖 Machine Learning Engineer 🦅 H1B Visa Sponsor Distributed Systems Distinguished Machine Learning Engineer 🕒 June 4 GEICO 10,000+ employees 💸 Finance Website LinkedIn All Job Openings Distinguished Engineer driving architecture and strategy for GEICO’s Generative AI platforms. Leading technical innovations and mentoring engineers while collaborating across teams for scalable solutions. 🏢 Palo Alto – Onsite 💵 $210k - $350k / year ⏰ Full Time 🟠 Senior 🔴 Lead 🤖 Machine Learning Engineer 🦅 H1B Visa Sponsor AWS Azure Cloud Staff Machine Learning Engineer 🕒 April 23 GEICO 10,000+ employees 💸 Finance Website LinkedIn All Job Openings Staff AI Engineer leading development and maintenance of GEICO’s virtual agent platform. Collaborate with a dynamic team on AI technologies for contact center productivity and service quality. 🏢 Palo Alto – Onsite 💵 $130k - $260k / year ⏰ Full Time 🔴 Lead 🤖 Machine Learning Engineer 🦅 H1B Visa Sponsor Cloud Java Python SDLC View More Machine Learning Engineer Jobs 🌐 Worldwide Built by Lior Neu-ner. I'd love to hear your feedback — Get in touch via DM or support@remoterocketship.com Search Search Jobs by country Search jobs by city Search jobs by job title Search entry-level jobs Search junior-level jobs Search senior-level jobs Search jobs by tech stack Search jobs by contract type Search remote internships Search remote part-time jobs Remote jobs Anywhere in the World Companies Hiring Anywhere in the World Companies Hiring Sales People Anywhere in the World Companies Hiring Software Engineers Anywhere in the World Resources Advice Tips for finding remote jobs Interview questions and answers Resume examples Cover letter examples Post a job Affiliates Privacy policy Terms of service Job board SEO course AI Apply Copilot OpenClaw job finder Jobs by Country Remote jobs anywhere in the world (Worldwide remote jobs) Remote jobs United States Remote jobs Australia Remote jobs Brazil Remote jobs Canada Remote jobs France Remote jobs Ireland Remote jobs Germany Remote jobs Netherlands Remote jobs Spain Remote jobs UK Popular Jobs Remote data analyst jobs Remote customer support jobs Remote executive assistant jobs Remote marketing jobs Remote product designer jobs Remote product manager jobs Remote project manager jobs Remote recruiter jobs Remote sales jobs Remote software engineer jobs Jobs by Type Remote full-time jobs Remote part-time jobs Remote contract jobs Remote internship jobs Remote entry-level jobs Remote jobs with no experience required Remote junior jobs (1-3 years of experience) Digital nomad jobs Remote jobs with no degree required Freelance remote jobs Temporary remote jobs Remote jobs hiring now Stay at home mom jobs

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Hard Skills & Tools

machine learningcomputational biologybioinformaticsPytorchTensorFlowJAXdata integrationactive learninggenomicssingle cell training data

Soft Skills

leadershipcollaborationmentoringcommunicationteamworkpresentation skillsinclusivityinterpersonal skillsproblem-solvingadaptability

Certifications

PhD