Field Lead – Biosecurity

Why this role matters

We believe advances in synthetic biology and AI are making engineered pathogens more accessible, while our defences rely on the same basic playbook: detect, develop countermeasures, distribute. Advances in physics, engineering, and chemistry hold the solution to many biosecurity problems, but they remain underexplored.

What you’ll do

• Scope engineering projects. Meet with biosecurity researchers, startups, and funders. Understand their technical challenges. Turn these into comprehensive engineering work plans, scopes, and specifications that Amodo can deliver.
• Build the network. Become the person biosecurity organizations call when they have a hardware problem. Within months, you should know the key players at organizations, and they should know you.
• Spot the gaps. Identify where engineering bottlenecks are holding back critical interventions. Propose projects that could unlock progress on UV air disinfection, pathogen detection systems, PPE innovation, or other high-priority areas.
• Help deliver. Work alongside Amodo’s engineers to ensure projects succeed. Be the technical point of contact for biosecurity clients, translating between domain expertise and engineering execution.
• Shape the field. Your work will directly influence which biosecurity technologies get built. Done well, this role could help determine how tens of millions of pounds in biosecurity R&D gets spent.

About you

• Must-haves:
• Strong technical foundations in a STEM field, with the ability to rapidly learn new domains from first principles
• Entrepreneurial and independent, with a track record of taking projects from concept to completion without hand-holding
• Charisma and communication skills that let you context-switch between engaging with academic researchers, briefing funders, and working with engineers
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity—you can take an ill-defined problem, break it down, and drive it to completion
• Strong additions:
• Experience designing and building hardware systems, particularly in scientific instrumentation, medical devices, or related fields
• Existing relationships or experience in biosecurity, public health, or pandemic preparedness
• A track record of building relationships that surface real information—experts share their actual uncertainties with you, not just polished talking points
• Experience scoping or managing engineering projects across multiple technical domains
• Published work, open-source contributions, or side projects demonstrating technical depth

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Benefits

• Free lunch every day
• Flexible remote working
• 35 days holiday
• Flexible working hours
• We can pay your professional institution fees
• Weekly maker evenings (tools, budget and pizza provided)