Software Engineer, Lab Automation

About the role

Adaptyv is building an automated laboratory where AI agents can design experiments and directly control physical equipment. As a Software Engineer in Lab Automation you will create the software that orchestrates complex hardware, turning scientific protocols into reliable, repeatable runs.

Key responsibilities

• Develop orchestration software to coordinate liquid handlers, plate readers, incubators, and robot arms, handling timing, state, and error recovery.
• Reverse‑engineer instrument communication protocols (serial, USB, TCP/IP) and build clean, reusable drivers and APIs.
• Model and execute multi‑step experimental protocols across multiple devices, ensuring reliability and reproducibility.
• Implement robust error‑recovery logic to retry, skip, alert, or pause runs based on failure modes.
• Create monitoring and observability dashboards for instrument health, run progress, and error metrics.
• Debug issues across the software‑hardware boundary, distinguishing communication, firmware, calibration, or code problems.
• Collaborate closely with lab automation engineers, software teammates, and scientists running production workloads.

Required profile

• Strong software engineering background with production‑grade code experience.
• Comfortable working at the intersection of software and hardware in a fast‑moving biotech environment.
• Ability to troubleshoot low‑level hardware issues and translate them into software solutions.

Required skills

• Python
• TypeScript
• Postgres (Supabase)
• Modal (compute platform)
• Experience with open‑source lab automation tools such as PyLabRobot and PyHamilton