Scientific Software Engineer

Summary

Join SandboxAQ, a high-growth company delivering AI solutions, as a Scientific Software Engineer. You will develop and maintain AI-accelerated computational chemistry tools, enabling breakthroughs in materials discovery. This role involves working with cutting-edge AI-powered material discovery software, including sophisticated agentic AI systems. You will collaborate with computational chemists, physicists, AI experts, and software engineers to transform scientific prototypes into scalable products. The position requires strong Python proficiency, experience with relevant development tools, and the ability to balance rapid software delivery with software quality. SandboxAQ offers competitive salaries, stock options, generous learning opportunities, and comprehensive benefits.

Requirements

• Degree in a relevant scientific discipline (for example computer science, computer engineering, physics, chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or a related field)
• At least 5 years professional experience (of which 3+ in a non-academic setting) in software development, designing and developing well-maintained software systems and collaborating with domain experts to design solutions that meet their needs
• Strong Python proficiency including experience with numeric and performance libraries (e.g. Numpy, Pytorch)
• Experience with relevant development tools and environments (e.g., git, Unix/Linux, cloud-based platforms, containerization)
• Ability to balance rapid software delivery with software quality
• Ability to devise, communicate internally and own technical roadmaps, in a self-directed environment
• Desire to work in a fast-paced team with diverse professional experiences and viewpoints

Responsibilities

• Maintain and extend existing scientific software packages, and drive the full lifecycle of new ones
• Architect and implement cutting-edge scientific and ML software alongside subject matter experts
• Adopt current practices and ensure stability through testing
• Accelerate use of these packages through AI agents
• Work closely with the client-facing Material Discovery Team to identify needs and help with technical challenges
• Improve prototypes of novel scientific tools to overcome bottlenecks and instabilities
• Offer oversight and guidance for performing mission-critical computational scientific work
• Provide clear and up-to-date documentation
• Work closely with the Engineering Team to build on top of the group’s cloud infrastructure
• Manage dependencies and integrate software into CI/CD pipelines
• Adapt software to different commercial cloud backends
• Foster a work culture of curiosity and kindness

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience developing software for scientific applications
• Familiarity with open source scientific libraries such as ASE, FairChem, Scikit-learn
• Experience building agentic AI solutions, including designing, developing, and implementing autonomous agents (e.g. Langchain and Langgraph)
• Experience with workflow management platforms (e.g. Apache Airflow)
• Experience with modern deep learning architectures
• Experience with the material discovery and material development processes

Benefits

• Medical/dental/vision
• Family planning/fertility
• PTO (summer and winter breaks)
• Financial wellness resources
• 401(k) plans
• Competitive salaries
• Stock options
• Generous learning opportunities