Research Assistant

MANI is building operational intelligence infrastructure for manufacturing. Our work sits at the intersection of manufacturing, industrial technology, data infrastructure, artificial intelligence, economic development, sustainability, and emerging product innovation.

About the role

The Research & Intelligence Assistant will conduct ongoing academic and market research and help translate that research into MANI’s public communications.

• MANI newsletter published multiple times per week
• LinkedIn posts and other organic outreach
• Market and industry research
• Product and technology research
• Internal research on emerging opportunities relevant to MANI

Research Areas

The role will cover a broad and evolving range of subjects, including:

• Manufacturing and industrial development
• Macroeconomics and economic development
• Global production and supply chains
• Industrial automation and robotics
• Artificial intelligence and data infrastructure
• Software and data engineering
• Mechanical and process engineering
• Chemical engineering and advanced materials
• Sustainable biotechnology and biomanufacturing
• Energy, climate, and industrial sustainability
• Emerging technologies and new product development
• Venture capital, industrial investment, and market development

You do not need to be an expert in all of these areas. We are looking for someone with the ability to investigate unfamiliar subjects, identify credible evidence, understand technical concepts, recognize patterns across disciplines, and explain why a development matters.

Responsibilities

You may:

• Review academic papers, industry reports, government data, company announcements, patents, market research, and technical publications
• Identify emerging trends, technologies, companies, products, and investment activity
• Track important developments across manufacturing, engineering, economics, sustainability, and technology
• Compare academic research with real-world market activity
• Analyze data and identify patterns worth investigating
• Maintain organized research notes, sources, and topic pipelines
• Develop ideas for MANI’s newsletter and LinkedIn content
• Draft research summaries, newsletter sections, and LinkedIn posts
• Help turn complex technical information into clear, engaging communication
• Identify developments that may affect MANI’s product strategy, customers, partnerships, or market positioning

Qualifications

This role may be especially suitable for students, recent graduates, researchers, or early-career professionals in:

• Data Science
• Software Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Chemical Engineering
• Biotechnology or Bioengineering
• Economics
• International Development
• Development Journalism
• Economic and Business Journalism
• Science and Technology Journalism
• Sustainability
• Industrial Engineering
• Manufacturing
• Public Policy
• Finance or Venture Research

Interdisciplinary backgrounds are strongly encouraged. We are particularly interested in candidates who can move between technical, economic, and human perspectives — whether their background is in engineering, research, journalism, economics, or development.

Skills

The strongest candidate will be:

• Intensely curious
• Comfortable researching unfamiliar subjects
• Able to distinguish strong evidence from weak claims
• Interested in both academic research and real-world markets
• A clear and thoughtful writer
• Comfortable working independently
• Able to connect ideas across disciplines
• Interested in how technology moves from research into products, companies, factories, and economies

Strong candidates may have experience with academic databases, market research, data analysis, technical writing, economics, engineering, scientific literature, or content development — but demonstrated curiosity and research ability matter more than having a perfect background.

About MANI

MANI is developing a unified operational intelligence layer for manufacturing. Modern manufacturers operate across machines, controls, maintenance systems, quality systems, ERP, MES, workforce platforms, logistics systems, and financial data. MANI is building the connection layer required to bring this fragmented operational environment together. Our pilot environment connected more than 945 machines and seven enterprise systems, supported more than 130 users, and achieved 85% user retention. We are currently expanding our research, market presence, and organic communications as we prepare for our next stage of company development and seed fundraising. This is an opportunity for someone who wants to research the future of industry while helping an early-stage technology company explain what that future means.