Principal Computational Biologist

The posting, as Gordian Biotechnology wrote it

Are you ready to own the strategy behind how Gordian turns large-scale in vivo perturbation screens into a prioritized, translatable pipeline of therapeutic targets across chronic and age-related disease, and to help build sophisticated analytical frameworks the rest of the team will use to get there?
Large-scale transcriptomic data is at the heart of Gordian's discovery efforts. In this role, you'll set the standard for how our screening and validation decisions are grounded in rigorous, transparent, state-of-the-art analyses, and you'll define the frameworks the rest of the computational team builds on.
The Destination
Gordian Biotechnology is a therapeutics company whose mission is to cure age-related disease and wake up every morning more capable than the day before.
Traditional ex vivo screening methods have failed to produce effective treatments, as age-related diseases have mechanisms driven by complex, multi-cellular interactions with the aged environment. To address this problem, Gordian's Mosaic Screening pools interventions in living animal models of disease, producing datasets that more rapidly enable causal validation for hundreds of targets, in the living context of disease that can be mapped to human patients. This resource lets us make the most informed choices on what new ideas for treating complex disease, and move validated targets into drug development. (more info on our website , and in our preprint ).
We are running this discovery engine in successive indication areas, currently focused on cardio-renal-metabolic diseases, to eventually map the effects of every druggable target across every relevant organ in vivo. Our ultimate mission is to develop drugs and run clinical trials, both internally and in collaboration with multiple partners. By pooling the data from each program, we seek to identify medicines with broad impact on the multimorbidity and decline caused by aging.
The Journey
Our mission is audacious, and the path will be full of both challenges and excitement. Two things characterize the Gordian experience: 1) We work as a team, with ownership in our own roles and trust in each other. 2) We strive for extraordinary outcomes, and in doing so grow our skills and capability.
Team – Relying on each other begins with transparency. We set clear goals, visibly connecting individuals and teams to our company objectives. This empowers each of us to make autonomous decisions about our work, knowing how they will affect the bigger picture. Our communication happens out in the open. We give and receive feedback from a perspective of helping each other grow, share mistakes, and ask for help.
Extraordinary – Every day, we ask ourselves, “How could this process or outcome be even better?” Knowing our overall mission, we do what we think will make the most progress, without asking for permission. We don't shy away from big challenges or unknown territory; we find a way to excel.
Gordian is trying to accomplish something treme
[…]
, and proactive about asking the right clarifying questions when extending your expertise into a new context.
You have experience mentoring junior computational candidates (RA/grauduate level) and working in a group
You have a track record of success in high-agency work, consistently creating momentum rather than waiting for direction.
You want to do your best work alongside exceptional teammates and are energized by environments where people push each other to think more clearly, work at a higher standard, and grow into better versions of themselves.
You truly want to play a key role in an early-stage startup screening new targets for intractable diseases of aging: A fast-paced environment full of both uncertainty and new challenges, demanding relentless resourcefulness.
Additional valuable skills if you have them
Direct prior work in cardio-renal-metabolic biology and relevant tissues (heart, kidney, adipose, liver); if not directly, closely related experience (for example, UK Biobank and other relevant GWAS catalogues, QTL analyses coupled with single-cell data etc.) that demonstrates transferable fluency when it comes to gaining deeper insights into MOA and target prioritization.
Experience with pooled perturbation and CRISPR screening data specifically
Experience with spatial transcriptomics data (10X Xenium, Visium, etc)
Experience with preclinical models for validation with functional readouts (e.g., human explants, organoids, etc.)

The Details

G o rdian aims to provide everything you need to thrive. Beyond our community and science, you’ll have enough equity to be a true stakeholder in the company, a competitive salary, full health/dental/vision/life insurance, 401k with match, onsite lunch paid for 3 days a week, an onsite gym, whatever vacation you need to be at your peak, remote work flexibility, and access to world-class mentors and advisors to support your professional growth. Our building is in the heart of the biotech capital of South San Francisco.