Job Description: Clinical, Microbiome & Translational Research Scientist (PhD)

Role Type: Contractor
Location: Remote (Worldwide)

About the Role

We are seeking PhD-level experts in clinical research, microbiome science, and translational bioinformatics to contribute their scientific expertise to the development and evaluation of next-generation AI systems.

In this role, you will create advanced scientific problems, evaluate AI-generated responses, and assess the accuracy, rigor, and depth of scientific reasoning. Your contributions will help ensure that AI systems deliver reliable, evidence-based insights across microbiome research, clinical bioinformatics, and translational life sciences.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop challenging, expert-level scientific problems in microbiome research, metagenomics, clinical bioinformatics, and related life sciences, with clear and verifiable solutions.

• Review and evaluate AI-generated outputs for scientific accuracy, methodological rigor, and depth of reasoning.

• Identify subtle scientific errors, unsupported conclusions, and methodological limitations.

• Develop detailed evaluation rubrics and reference answers grounded in primary literature and established research methodologies.

• Apply domain expertise in areas such as 16S and shotgun metagenomics, virome and host-microbiome analysis, biomarker discovery, clinical genomics, and omics-driven precision medicine.

• Provide clear, detailed written explanations of scientific reasoning to support expert review and validation.

• Maintain high-quality standards through iterative feedback, revisions, and peer review.

Required Qualifications

• PhD in Microbiology, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Biomedical Sciences, Immunology, Epidemiology, or a closely related field.

• Hands-on research experience in an academic or industry laboratory. Wet lab experience is an advantage.

• Professional written and spoken English proficiency (C1 level or higher).

Preferred Skills and Qualifications

• Postdoctoral or industry research experience in microbiome, clinical, or translational research.

• Peer-reviewed publications, preferably as a first author in relevant scientific journals.

• Experience with microbiome analysis tools such as QIIME2, Kraken2, MetaPhlAn, HUMAnN, MAG assembly and binning, or virome analysis tools.

• Clinical and translational research experience involving TCGA, UK Biobank, biomarker discovery, survival analysis, electronic health record (EHR) and omics integration, or oncology and immunology genomics.

• Strong knowledge of statistics and machine learning methods for high-dimensional biological data.

• Programming proficiency in Python and/or R, with familiarity with Bash and workflow management tools.

• Experience reviewing, benchmarking, or developing scientific content.