Automation Scientist Graduate Intern, RAC Operations

Core responsibilities:

• Master the RAC Platform: Learn to operate and maintain a system of Reconfigurable Automation Cells, designed to support a variety of molecular and cell biology scientific workflows. You will queue and submit programmatically-generated protocols, remote monitor for errors and conduct remote and on-site error recovery, with the support of our Apex Support team. Over time, you will advance to modifying or writing new protocols for our RAC Automation system.
• Learn Biology: You will prepare and onboard reagents and consumables for upcoming molecular and cell biology scientific workflows, execute and monitor such workflows, and take down and offboard used plates from completed workflows. In the process, you will learn how to do scientifically rigorous experimental design and execution as well as how to optimize scientific workflows for running on RAC automation.

This role helps push Ginkgo's "Nebula" frontier lab towards autonomous operation, contributing to making biology easier to engineer to address global challenges in health, energy, food, and materials.

Required skills and qualifications:

• Recent graduate (BS/MS) or expected 2026 graduation date in Computer Science, Bioengineering, Computational Biology, or Bioinformatics. Chemical, Mechanical or Electrical Engineers with computational skills and a strong interest in learning biology are also welcome.
• "Automation-forward" mindset: you love working with lab automation and making robotic systems run smoother.
• Willingness to do whatever it takes to ensure that existing and new scientific workflows run successfully on our RAC automation system.

Compensation and benefits:

• Base salary range: $45,100-$63,600
• Company stock awards
• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental & vision coverage
• Health spending accounts
• Voluntary benefits
• Leave of absence policies
• 401(k) program with employer contribution
• 8 paid holidays plus full-week winter shutdown
• Unlimited Paid Time Off policy

Ginkgo Bioworks' mission is to make biology easier to engineer. The company constructs, edits, and redesigns the living world to answer global challenges in health, energy, food, materials, and more.