Automation Engineer I/II (AI Science)

Location: Full-time, on-site in Cambridge, MA, USA. Permanent weekday shifts: first shift 7:00 AM–3:00 PM or second shift 2:00–10:00 PM; availability for either shift is required.

Expected base salary: $75,600–$124,800 USD annually, with bonus potential and early-stage equity.

Company

hirify.global is building an AI Science Factory that combines advanced AI models and proprietary instruments to automate scientific discovery across medicine, materials, and energy.

What you will do

• Operate AISF workcells during the assigned shift, triage instrument faults, software errors, and run failures, and recover stalled runs.
• Identify and implement improvements to reliability, throughput, recoverability, systems, and workflows, then verify that changes hold.
• Plan maintenance and improvement work around live production, coordinate downtime with Research Operations, and schedule approved service windows.
• Collaborate with mechanical, controls, software, and scientific teams to resolve hardware, integration, controls, and software problems.
• Execute preventive maintenance and calibrations, and coordinate vendor service, parts, and spares.
• Maintain runbooks, recovery playbooks, diagnostic tooling, shift documentation, and structured handoffs while surfacing recurring failure patterns.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Biology, Chemistry, Materials Science, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent hands-on experience.
• At least 1 year of hands-on experience with lab automation, lab instrumentation, or production operations in a life sciences or physical sciences environment.
• Ability to independently troubleshoot electro-mechanical equipment and software systems and determine when to escalate.
• Strong written communication for documenting problems, decisions, and open issues across shifts.
• Ability to work effectively with mechanical, controls, and software engineers and scientific teams.
• Comfort working in a live production environment where scientists depend on the systems being maintained.
• Availability for either listed weekday shift and on-site work in Cambridge, MA is required.

Nice to have

• Experience with liquid handlers, plate-based workflows, automated storage, or high-throughput screening instrumentation.
• Familiarity with lab scheduling or workflow orchestration software such as Cellario, Overlord, Green Button Go, or similar.
• Scripting or light programming in Python, C#, or similar for log analysis, diagnostics, or tooling.
• Familiarity with scientific processes including sample stability, timing windows, reagent handling, and result-impacting deviations.
• Exposure to robotic integration platforms or multi-instrument workcell environments.
• Experience with preventive maintenance programs, vendor service relationships, multi-shift operations, structured handoffs, or continuous improvement practices.

Culture & Benefits

• Multidisciplinary SELO organization staffed across shifts, with permanent rather than rotating shift assignments and one-hour handoff overlap.
• Full-time U.S. employees receive medical, dental, and vision coverage; employer-paid life and disability insurance; flexible time off; company-wide holidays; and paid parental leave.
• Educational assistance, commuter benefits including bike share memberships for office-based employees, and a company-subsidized lunch program are provided.
• Bonus potential and generous early-stage equity are available; compensation reflects background, expertise, and expected impact.
• Equal employment opportunity is provided regardless of protected characteristics.

Hiring process

• Applicants should indicate their preferred permanent shift: first shift or second shift.
• Unsolicited resumes from recruitment or staffing agencies are not accepted unless the agency has been contacted directly by LILA’s internal Talent Acquisition team.