AI Biologist - Microscopy

AI Biologist - Microscopy

Latch builds rigorous scientific benchmarks (benchmarks.bio http://benchmarks.bio) for AI agents across biology. We work with frontier labs and pharma to measure whether agents can handle real biological workflows: the messy, multi-layer reasoning that matters in the field.

We’re seeking an AI Biologist to join our Microscopy team, pushing what AI can achieve in biological imaging.

About the Role. You will be the scientific authority on ground truth, testing whether agents can reason like an expert microscopist. AI agents today struggle to interrogate raw images, separate real biology from artifacts in acquisition, staining, and segmentation, and reach conclusions an expert would stand behind. Experts themselves disagree on roughly 1 in 6 images, so knowing where the evidence ends is part of the work. You will work with software engineers and scientists to build the tasks and datasets behind our benchmarks across cell biology, tissue, and disease. Your judgment will set the standard agent outputs are held to, including:

Build the task

- Define what expert reasoning looks like for an imaging question, and write gold-standard answers with the rationale an experienced microscopist or pathologist would defend

- Design realistic scenarios across the imaging workflow: sample prep, staining, acquisition, preprocessing, segmentation, quantification, and interpretation

- Curate image datasets across modalities: immunofluorescence, confocal and live-cell, electron microscopy, histology and histopathology, and high-content screening

- Build analysis pipelines in Python, including deep-learning segmentation, that produce verifiable ground truth

- Partner with software engineers to turn your judgment into new workflows

Set the hard calls

- Test whether agents distinguish true signal from artifact, such as bleed-through, uneven illumination, fixation damage, out-of-focus planes, or segmentation failure

- Adjudicate ambiguous images: decide what the data supports, where reasonable experts would disagree, and which additional stain, image, or experiment would settle the call

- Test whether agents choose the right imaging modality, resolution, and unit of analysis for the question

Judge the agent

- Interrogate agent reasoning step by step, and challenge conclusions that sound right but would not survive pathologist review or lab meeting

- Pinpoint where agents go wrong: why a step fails, what an expert would do instead, and what evidence would change the call

- Score agent confidence, rewarding explicit uncertainty over overconfident calls on ambiguous images

Requirements

- PhD in cell biology, bioimage analysis, pathology, or a related field; or an MD with pathology training

- Senior, hands-on imaging experience: you have looked at thousands of samples and know what normal and abnormal look like

- Direct experience with image segmentation tools such as CellProfiler, Cellpose, StarDist, QuPath, ilastik, napari, or Fiji

- Deep expertise in at least one area (bioimage analysis, cell biology, or histopathology) and working fluency across the others

- Strong command of experimental design, image quantification, and statistics

- AI-ready from day one: daily use of Claude, Cursor, or similar agents, with the judgment to spot where model reasoning is technically correct but scientifically unsound

- Confidence to overrule an AI agent when the evidence demands it, and the openness to update when shown wrong

- Ability to calibrate confidence and communicate uncertainty rather than defaulting to binary calls

- Bonus: electron microscopy, pathology, or pharmacology experience (e.g., pharmacodynamic or drug-uptake imaging assays)

- Bonus: familiarity with public resources such as the Image Data Resource (IDR), BioImage Archive, Human Protein Atlas, Cell Painting Gallery, or TCGA whole-slide images

Culture @ Latch

How we work. We practice radical transparency: you’ll know how the company is doing, what’s working, and what isn’t. It’s always us against the problem, never each other. We’re respectfully opinionated, we respect each other’s time, and we think through possible solutions before we bring a problem to anyone. Most of the team arrives between 7 and 10am and leaves between 4 and 7pm. Nobody tracks when you’re in, but we give each other a heads-up on Slack when we’re running later than usual. We judge output, not time in a seat, and the only fixed meeting are a few pod check-ins per week. We use AI constantly, so we reward original expert judgment, not AI output passed off as your own. You’ll start on the bench that fits your expertise and can move across teams as you build a track record.

Outside of work. Company outings most months, team offsites, and a community that does cycling, soccer, figure skating, boxing, running, martial arts, music, books, and game nights.

Compensation & Logistics (US)

- Pay: $140K–$180K OTE, a mix of base & uncapped performance pay. Split varies by state. - Performance pay is based on weekly quota attainment. - If we pull you onto a special project, you’re paid full OTE for its duration. - If the platform goes down, you’re paid full OTE for that day.

- Ramp: full OTE for your first 4 weeks while we onboard you into our workflows.

- Employment: full-time W-2 - Health, dental, vision: 100% covered for you, 50% for dependents - 401(k) (no match) - PTO: 12 days to start, more as you’re promoted

- Growth: promotions are based on output, not tenure, with OTE rising at each level.

- Location: remote, hybrid, or onsite in SF. Onsite is preferred: waterfront office in Mission Bay, catered lunch and dinner, unlimited snacks.

- Work authorization: we sponsor H-1B (incl. transfers), O-1, TN, and support STEM OPT.

Interview Process

Timeline: We move fast: no longer than 2 week interview process

1. Apply

2. Take-Home Project HackerRank

3. Latch Intro - Talent Team

4. Technical Interview - Member of Technical Staff

5. Culture Interview - C-Suite

6. Offer

7. Background Check