1

Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc Jobs (NOW HIRING)

next page

Showing results 1-20

Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc information

What is a machine learning drug discovery postdoc?

A Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc is a postdoctoral researcher who uses advanced machine learning techniques to accelerate and improve the drug discovery process. They work at the intersection of computational science, biology, and chemistry to develop algorithms that can predict molecular properties, identify potential drug candidates, and optimize compounds. Their research helps pharmaceutical companies and academic labs find effective drugs more efficiently, often reducing the time and cost required for new drug development. Typically, these postdocs collaborate closely with interdisciplinary teams and may also contribute to scientific publications and conferences.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a machine learning drug discovery postdoc?

To thrive as a Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc, you need a strong background in computational biology, machine learning, and chemistry, typically supported by a PhD in a relevant field. Expertise with programming languages (such as Python or R), deep learning frameworks (like TensorFlow or PyTorch), and bioinformatics tools is highly valuable. Strong analytical thinking, collaboration, and effective scientific communication are crucial soft skills for advancing research projects and sharing results. These skills and qualities are essential to drive innovation, interpret complex biological data, and translate computational models into actionable drug discovery insights.

What are some typical challenges faced by a machine learning drug discovery postdoc, and how can they be addressed?

As a Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc, one of the main challenges is integrating complex biological data with advanced computational models to generate meaningful insights for drug development. Addressing issues such as data sparsity, heterogeneity, and ensuring model interpretability are common hurdles. Collaborating closely with wet-lab scientists, bioinformaticians, and other computational researchers is essential for validating predictions and translating findings into actionable experiments. Regular communication with interdisciplinary teams and staying updated on the latest computational techniques can help overcome these challenges and drive impactful research.

What are popular job titles related to Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc jobs?

For Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc jobs, the most frequently searched job titles are:

Infographic showing various Machine Learning Drug Discovery Postdoc job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 72% Full Time, 24% Part Time, 1% Temporary, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 87% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 11% Remote job distribution.

Machine Learning Scientist II, Drug Discovery Analytics

Redwood City, CA โ€ข Hybrid

Full-time

Posted 4 days ago


Job description

The Opportunity:

  • We are seeking a Machine Learning Scientist II to help accelerate drug discovery through advanced analytics and artificial intelligence. This hands-on individual contributor will develop and apply predictive models and analytical methods that transform complex biological and chemical datasets into actionable insights for research teams.

  • The Machine Learning Scientist II will work at the interface of data science, chemistry, and biology to support target discovery, compound optimization, phenotypic screening, and translational research. The role is well suited to a scientist who brings strong technical foundations in machine learning, curiosity about drug discovery, and a collaborative approach to solving real-world scientific problems.

  • Working with senior data scientists and experimental collaborators, the successful candidate will contribute analyses, models, and reusable workflows to a data-driven discovery ecosystem where data, analytics, and experimentation continuously inform one another.

Responsibilities:

  • Develop, implement, and evaluate machine-learning models that support drug discovery questions, including compound activity, selectivity, developability, target engagement, and phenotypic screening outcomes.

  • Perform exploratory data analysis and quality assessment on chemical, biological, imaging, and phenotypic datasets.

  • Prepare and integrate heterogeneous datasets, including chemical structure and screening data, structural biology outputs, molecular simulation outputs, and high-content imaging or morphological profiling data.

  • Apply appropriate modeling approaches, including supervised learning, deep learning, graph-based methods, and ensemble methods, under the guidance of project and functional leads.

  • Use sound validation strategies to assess model performance, robustness, applicability, and limitations.

  • Collaborate with data engineering and machine-learning engineering partners to support reproducible workflows and integration of analytical outputs into discovery pipelines.

  • Partner with medicinal chemists, biologists, and other research scientists to translate scientific questions into computational analyses and communicate results clearly.

  • Document methods, code, results, and key assumptions in a manner that supports reproducibility and knowledge sharing.

Required Skills, Experience and Education:

  • Ph.D. in machine learning, computational biology, computational chemistry, computer science, statistics, bioinformatics, or a related quantitative field; or a M.S. degree with relevant industry experience.

  • Typically 2-5 years of relevant experience applying machine learning, data science, or advanced analytics to scientific datasets; relevant doctoral research may be considered.

  • Demonstrated experience developing, validating, and evaluating predictive or classification models.

  • Strong Python programming skills and experience with scientific computing libraries such as NumPy, Pandas, and SciPy.

  • Hands-on familiarity with machine-learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, and/or scikit-learn.

  • Experience with data visualization, exploratory data analysis, and working with noisy or incomplete experimental datasets.

  • Ability to communicate technical work clearly and collaborate effectively with cross-functional scientific partners.

Preferred Skills:

  • Experience in biotechnology, pharmaceutical, healthcare, or drug discovery environments.

  • Experience with phenotypic screening, high-content imaging, Cell Painting, morphological profiling, or computer vision for microscopy images.

  • Familiarity with representation learning, self-supervised learning, embedding generation, dimensionality reduction, clustering, or phenotype discovery.

  • Familiarity with cheminformatics or molecular modeling tools, such as RDKit or OpenEye.

  • Experience with multi-omics data analysis, cloud computing environments, MLOps, or scalable model deployment.

  • Working knowledge of cell biology, drug discovery workflows, assay development, microscopy, experimental design, or biological interpretation of machine-learning results.

#LI-Hybrid #LI-CT1