Research Associate, Cell Line Development

Prolific Machines

Emeryville, California

Posted on: 2026-08-28

Category: agritech

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Employment type:

Full time

Experience required:

Intermediate

Salary

$70,000.00 - $100,000.00

About the company:

Prolific Machines is an innovative startup biotech on a mission to accelerate the transition to sustainable agriculture. We believe that we have the only solution to make cultured meat at a price that is competitive with factory farming. We are looking for mission-driven, skilled, and kind people to help create the alternative we need to transition to a more sustainable and healthy future.

Prolific Machines is ushering in a new era of biotechnology with light. Our first-of-its-kind optogenetic platform delivers unprecedented control, precisely guiding cellular behavior when and where it matters most. Unlike existing tools used to control biology, our technology enables dynamic, tunable control over virtually any cellular function in any cell type. We're enabling partners to unlock robust efficiency, quality, and reproducibility advantages across the most complex pharmaceuticals and therapeutic proteins. Prolific is supported by leading investors, including Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Mayfield and SOSV.

We are seeking a skilled Research Associate to join our Cell Line Development team, contributing technically and scientifically to the advancement of multiple projects while bringing innovation and new perspectives to our workflows. This role will be based on-site in Emeryville, CA and will report to a Principal Scientist of the Cell Line Development department.

Benefits: Generous equity package in an early stage company, retirement plan with company contribution, flexible PTO with healthy time off minimums, company-covered medical, dental, and vision insurance, life and disability insurance, career coaching, mental health support, free team lunches everyday, great snacks, and companywide social events!

Diversity: Prolific Machines values diverse perspectives, backgrounds, experiences, and ideas. We are committed to building an inclusive workplace where all employees can bring their authentic selves to work and have equal opportunities to succeed. Prolific Machines is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Location: The San Francisco Bay Area (Emeryville, CA)

Responsibilities:

Contribute to the maintenance of an internal cell line bank, including banking of new cell lines and ensuring the quality of cell lines for Research purposes.

Develop and engineer new cell lines;

Assessment and quantification of target antigen expression.

Design and perform cell-based and protein analysis assays.

Contribute to improvement of processes and techniques.

Analysis and interpretation of data and presentation to internal stakeholders.

Maintain a close collaboration with cross-functional project teams.

Maintain accurate and timely up-to-date documentation (familiarity with ELNs).

Update and optimize local guidelines / SOPs for the team.

Routine maintenance of the Tissue Culture labs.

Requirements:

For this position, we are looking for a highly motivated individual bringing along:

A Bachelor’s degree in Biology or equivalent with 2 or more years of experience.

Previous experience in industry is a plus.

Extensive hands-on experience with mammalian cell culture techniques.

Careful and accurate working style, quality awareness.

Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, Outlook, and Teams).

Data analytic software, such as GraphPad Prism.

Specific cell line development experience that will help you to succeed in this role will be:

Experience executing batch and fed-batch culture studies as part of cell line development and upstream process development activities.

Experience with bench-scale bioreactor set-up and operation (mammalian culture).

Familiarity with fully-automated instrumentation (FACS, Octet, Cell Printer, etc.) for the selection of high-producing clones used in antibody discovery and cell line development.

Experience with basic molecular biology techniques (PCR, ligation cloning, gel electrophoresis, etc.).

This role requires on-site/in-person presence in the Emeryville office. Occasional weekend work may be required to support operational needs. This position summary is not intended to be all inclusive. An employee may perform other related duties as negotiated to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.

About You:

A successful candidate for this role will:

Have a flexible and independent working attitude.

Adapt successfully to changing situations and environments.

Have a strong eagerness to learn.

Have well-developed communication, teamwork, and organizational skills.

Be proactive and drive to optimize workflows.

This is an individual contributor role within the Research Associate track. The position is best suited for candidates who excel in hands-on execution, instrumentation, and technical operations in a laboratory setting. Growth opportunities within this role are focused on deepening technical expertise, expanding instrument proficiency, and taking on increasing operational responsibility within the Cell Line Development function.