Principal Scientist, Biologics AI

Job Description: About the RoleWe are seeking an experienced and visionary Principal Scientist to lead Biologics AI innovation at AstraZeneca's US R&D centers in Waltham, MA or Gaithersburg, MD. This is a high-impact scientific leadership role accountable for defining and executing the AI strategy that integrates state-of-the-art machine learning with wet-lab discovery to accelerate biologics engineering and enable next-generation biotherapeutics. You will set technical direction, own delivery across multiple programs, and shape data generation at scale-working across computational and experimental functions and with global partners to translate AI into robust, reproducible advances in discovery.Key Responsibilities

* Strategic leadership and vision: Define and drive the AI strategy for biologics discovery and engineering, setting priorities and roadmaps that integrate AI and wet-lab capabilities and deliver measurable impact on pipeline goals.
* Program ownership: Lead multiple cross-functional discovery initiatives from problem framing through deployment, ensuring rapid translation of computational insights into experimental design and decision-making.
* Advanced ML innovation: Architect, develop, and guide application of cutting-edge models-protein language models, structure-informed and geometric methods, de novo/protein design, and multi-modal learning that fuses sequence, structure, and biological activity data-to solve high-value scientific problems.
* AI-wet-lab integration at scale: Establish closed-loop design-build-test-learn workflows with experimental teams, formalizing feedback cycles, uncertainty quantification, and active learning to improve model reliability and throughput.
* Data strategy and governance: Set standards for high-quality data generation, curation, and metadata; partner with wet-lab leaders to design assays and campaigns that maximize ML utility and reproducibility; influence data platform evolution in collaboration with informatics and engineering.
* End-to-end ML lifecycle leadership: Oversee and improve processes across data pipelines, model development, validation, deployment, monitoring, and continuous improvement, including best practices for reproducibility, documentation, and scientific rigor.
* Technical mentorship and team development: Mentor and upskill scientists across AI/ML and experimental domains; provide day-to-day technical guidance and contribute to recruitment and development of a high-performing team.
* Stakeholder influence and communication: Communicate strategy, progress, risk, and scientific insights to senior stakeholders; influence portfolio decisions and advocate for AI-enabled approaches internally and with external partners.
* External scientific leadership: Drive publications, patents, and external visibility; represent AstraZeneca in collaborations and at scientific venues; evaluate and integrate emerging methods and tools.
Required Qualifications

* Education and experience: PhD in computer science, machine learning, bioinformatics, computational biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering, or a related quantitative field, with typically 8+ years of relevant post-degree experience in academia and/or industry; or a Master's with 12+ years of relevant experience.
* Domain impact in biologics AI: Demonstrated track record applying AI/ML to proteins, antibodies, or related biologics, with clear examples of methods translated in
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*Click on SAVE TO JOB ORDER* Close Date: 2026-08-07
Number of Positions Available: 1