Senior AI Engineer, R&D

At RayzeBio, every day is an opportunity to ignite meaningful change. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bristol Myers Squibb, RayzeBio blends the nimble, pioneering spirit of an emergent biotech with the global expertise and resources of a leading innovator in oncology. Our mission is to develop transformative radiopharmaceutical therapies that offer new hope for patients living with cancer. Here, you’ll join a multidisciplinary team where your ideas are valued, your expertise is amplified, and collaboration is at the heart of everything we do. From day one, expect to make an immediate impact—on our science, on our teams, and most importantly, on patients. Learn more about RayzeBio: https://careers.bms.com/rayzebio/

The Senior AI Engineer, R&D will help build and deploy AI-native tools, applications, and models that accelerate scientific workflows and support ambitious AI applications in drug discovery across RayzeBio. This role will partner directly with R&D stakeholders to identify high-value opportunities, translate emerging AI capabilities into practical solutions, and deliver measurable impact across research workflows, knowledge access, and decision support. This position reports to the Director, Applied Generative AI and will work closely and independently with assigned client teams in R&D.

This is not a traditional software engineering role. We are building a new kind of team: small, fast-moving, AI-first, and deeply focused on leverage. The person in this role should be comfortable working independently with client teams, building strong relationships with stakeholders, and helping define new ways of working in an AI-native environment. This is an on-site role in San Diego.

We are looking for a senior builder who is fully AI-native, thrives in fast-moving environments, and is energized by the opportunity to move faster than traditional software organizations and drive materially greater AI adoption in the business.

Responsibilities

• Partner directly with R&D stakeholders to identify, scope, prioritize, and deliver high-value AI use cases across scientific workflows, knowledge access, decision support, and drug discovery.

• Own relationships with assigned client teams, understand their workflows in depth, and translate business needs into practical technical roadmaps and deliverables.

• Build AI-enabled applications, assistants, automations, and data products that improve scientific productivity and accelerate research.

• Lead larger AI initiatives in drug discovery, including model-driven approaches for scientific understanding, prediction, and prioritization.

• Evaluate, prototype, and apply frontier models, agent frameworks, and AI engineering tools to real research problems.

• Support development of novel internal AI capabilities, including domain-adapted models, specialized workflows, and, where appropriate, foundation-model efforts.

• Drive technical innovation within the team by identifying new tools, patterns, and opportunities that can materially improve speed, quality, or leverage.

• Collaborate with internal and external technical partners, where appropriate, to evaluate tools, models, and opportunities for partnership.

• Connect AI systems to internal data, documents, and research infrastructure to create practical, scalable solutions.

• Help develop and own technical roadmaps for key workstreams and ensure projects move from idea to deployment with clear priorities and accountability.

• Help deploy, monitor, and improve solutions in approved internal environments.

• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to team standards for delivery, quality, guardrails, and AI-native ways of working.

• Stay current on the latest developments in agentic coding, AI-assisted development, and frontier AI tools, and help raise the team’s collective capability over time.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Engineering, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related technical field.

• At least 5 years of experience in software engineering, machine learning engineering, applied AI, data-intensive engineering, or a related technical role.

• Strong computer science fundamentals, including programming, data structures, algorithms, software design, and systems thinking.

• Strong Python skills and the ability to build working applications and prototypes quickly.

• Hands-on experience building AI-enabled applications, internal tools, or intelligent workflows in production or near-production environments.

• Strong familiarity with modern AI tools, LLM APIs, coding agents, and AI-assisted development environments.

• Familiarity with tools such as Claude Code or Codex, and comfort using them as part of day-to-day development.

• Up-to-date knowledge of the latest developments in agentic coding, AI-assisted software development, and frontier AI tooling.

• Ability to work independently with business stakeholders, build trust quickly, and operate effectively in a highly iterative, fast-moving environment.

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to lead discussions, shape priorities, and work effectively with scientific teams.

• Demonstrated ability to own workstreams, develop roadmaps, and drive projects from concept through deployment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading or mentoring junior engineers or technical contributors.

• Demonstrated interest or experience in frontier AI, model development, or applied ML through work, research, publications, open-source contributions, or significant projects.

• Experience working on scientific, life sciences, computational chemistry, biology, or data-intensive technical problems is a plus.

• Familiarity with building internal tools, automation workflows, or AI-enabled applications in research or enterprise settings.

• Curiosity about how frontier AI can be applied to scientific discovery and drug development.

• Candidates who are energized by moving faster than traditional software organizations and helping lead AI adoption in the business are especially well suited for this role.

If you come across a role that intrigues you but doesn’t perfectly line up with your resume, we encourage you to apply anyway. You could be one step away from work that will transform your life and career.

The starting compensation range(s) for this role are listed above for a full-time employee (FTE) basis. Additional incentive cash and stock opportunities (based on eligibility) may be available. The starting pay rate takes into account characteristics of the job, such as required skills, where the job is performed, the employee’s work schedule, job-related knowledge, and experience. Final, individual compensation will be decided based on demonstrated experience. 
Eligibility for specific benefits listed on our careers site may vary based on the job and location. For more on benefits, please visit https://careers.bms.com/life-at-bms/.
 

Benefit offerings are subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans in effect at the time and may require enrollment. Our benefits include:

• Health Coverage: Medical, pharmacy, dental, and vision care.

• Wellbeing Support: Programs such as BMS Well-Being Account, BMS Living Life Better, and Employee Assistance Programs (EAP).

• Financial Well-being and Protection: 401(k) plan, short- and long-term disability, life insurance, accident insurance, supplemental health insurance, business travel protection, personal liability protection, identity theft benefit, legal support, and survivor support.

​Work-life benefits include:

Paid Time Off

• US Exempt Employees: flexible time off (unlimited, with manager approval, 11 paid national holidays (not applicable to employees in Phoenix, AZ, Puerto Rico or Rayzebio employees)

• Phoenix, AZ, Puerto Rico and Rayzebio Exempt, Non-Exempt, Hourly Employees: 160 hours annual paid vacation for new hires with manager approval, 11 national holidays, and 3 optional holidays

Based on eligibility*, additional time off for employees may include unlimited paid sick time, up to 2 paid volunteer days per year, summer hours flexibility, leaves of absence for medical, personal, parental, caregiver, bereavement, and military needs and an annual Global Shutdown between Christmas and New Years Day.

All global employees full and part-time who are actively employed at and paid directly by BMS at the end of the calendar year are eligible to take advantage of the Global Shutdown.

*Eligibility Disclosure: The summer hours program is for United States (U.S.) office-based employees due to the unique nature of their work. Summer hours are generally not available for field sales and manufacturing operations and may also be limited for the capability centers. Employees in remote-by-design or lab-based roles may be eligible for summer hours, depending on the nature of their work, and should discuss eligibility with their manager. Employees covered under a collective bargaining agreement should consult that document to determine if they are eligible. Contractors, leased workers and other service providers are not eligible to participate in the program.

RayzeBio and Bristol Myers Squibb

RayzeBio was acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) in 2024 and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BMS; however, RayzeBio will continue to operate as a standalone organization.

Supporting People with Disabilities

BMS and RayzeBio are dedicated to ensuring that people with disabilities can excel through a transparent recruitment process, reasonable workplace accommodations/adjustments and ongoing support in their roles. Applicants can request a reasonable workplace accommodation/adjustment prior to accepting a job offer. If you require reasonable accommodations/adjustments in completing this application, or in any part of the recruitment process, direct your inquiries to [email protected]. Visit careers.bms.com/eeo-accessibility to access our complete Equal Employment Opportunity statement.

Candidate Rights

BMS and RayzeBio will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, pursuant to applicable laws in your area.

If you live in or expect to work from Los Angeles County if hired for this position, please visit this page for important additional information: https://careers.bms.com/california-residents/

Data Protection

We will never request payments, financial information, or social security numbers during our application or recruitment process. Learn more about protecting yourself at https://careers.bms.com/fraud-protection/

Any data processed in connection with role applications will be treated in accordance with applicable data privacy policies and regulations.

If you believe that the job posting is missing information required by local law or incorrect in any way, please contact BMS at [email protected]. Please provide the Job Title and Requisition number so we can review. Communications related to your application should not be sent to this email and you will not receive a response.