Postdoctoral Research Fellow - Generative Biology Institute Generative Biology Institute

Generative Biology Institute GBI is tackling the key challenges in making biology engineerable, and thereby unlocking the unrivalled power of biology for the benefit of humanity. GBI is part of the Ellison Institute of Technology, Oxford (EIT) and is led by founding Director Jason Chin.

The vision of the Generative Biology Institute is to lay the foundations for engineering biology, and unlock its potential for good. To achieve this, we must overcome two key challenges. First, we need the ability to write in the natural language of biology, enabling the rapid and scalable synthesis of entire genomes with precision. Second, we must understand what to write — determining which DNA sequences will generate biological systems that perform the desired functions.

Addressing these challenges will allow us to harness the full power of biology to create transformative solutions across health, agriculture, clean energy and more.

GBI will have sustained and substantial funding to support the unique scale and ambition of its ground-breaking vision for engineering biology. GBI researchers will also be supported by cutting‑edge technology hubs including mass spectrometry, flow cytometry, sequencing, automation, imaging, and bioprocessing. GBI will also have access to substantial compute resources that can be leveraged to further accelerate progress, including scientific compute, bioinformatics, and machine learning.

The environment at GBI will allow researchers to undertake ambitious, long‑term, collaborative research, and we will actively support the translation of research to commercial applications, where appropriate.

The Generative Biology Institute will commence operations in a newly renovated bespoke space in the Oxford Science Park. The team will later move to a purpose‑made facility in the Oxford Science Park, currently under construction. Once complete, this state‑of‑the‑art facility will include more than 40,000 m² of research laboratory and office space. It will house over 30 groups and up to 600 employees at scale, focused on solving the two critical challenges in making biology engineerable and applying the solutions to addressing the global challenges encapsulated in EIT’s Humane Endeavors.

We are seeking ambitious, creative, and highly skilled Postdoctoral Researchers to join the Generative Biology Institute (GBI). This is your opportunity to be part of cutting‑edge research within an institute dedicated to engineering biology at an unprecedented scale. In this role you will support an internationally competitive research programme, leveraging GBI’s exceptional facilities, sustained funding, and collaborative environment. You will design and execute experiments, contribute to high‑impact publications, and play a key role in the training and mentorship of junior researchers and students.

Working at the interface of biology, technology, and engineering, you will help shape GBI’s vision to reimagine what’s possible in biology.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis by the specific research groups you select. On the application page, you will be asked to select up to three (3) research groups you wish to apply to. In your cover letter, please clearly identify the group(s) you are applying to and explain your fit, interest, and relevant experience for each one. Please note that applicants who select more than three groups, or who do not specify their groups of interest, will not be considered.

All applications must be submitted exclusively through the EIT job portal. Please do not contact Principal Investigators directly, as direct outreach will not be considered as part of the application process. Due to the volume of applications, the review and decision process may take 3–6 months.

Leopold Parts – The Parts group works to engineer and model mammalian chromosomes. In particular, the group has long‑term aims to delete, randomize, evolve, and model chromosome‑scale DNA, all with the aim of informing models of synthetic DNA function; other ideas fitting this broad remit are very…