At Umami Bioworks, we are pioneering cultivated, 'not caught' seafood by developing the production system for delicious, nutritious, and affordable cultivated fish, starting with IUCN Red Listed species that are difficult to farm and being driven extinct by human consumption. We are partnering with food producers to scale our cultivated seafood production system to provide people around the world with a stable, resilient, local supply of seafood free from mercury, antibiotics, microplastics, and ocean pollutants.

We’re on a mission to empower humanity to eat sustainably without sacrifice. We believe the only way to change how the majority of the world eats meat and seafood is to create real seafood - the most delicious, healthiest seafood available - without the environmental and animal welfare consequences of our current practices.

We’re a venture-backed biotech startup located in Singapore where some of the world’s smartest, most passionate people are pioneering a sustainable food future that is attractive and accessible to people around the world. We are united by our collective drive to ask tough questions, take on challenging problems, and apply cutting-edge science and engineering to create a better future for humanity. At Umami Bioworks, you will be encouraged to dream big and will have the freedom to create, invent, and do the best, most impactful work of your career.

Umami Bioworks is looking to hire an inquisitive, innovative, and independent Scientist for Cell Line Development to join our R&D team in India.

The candidate will be responsible for developing, characterizing and optimizing cell lines derived from fish and crustacean species for cultivated seafood applications. The role involves primary cell isolation, adaptation to suspension culture and differentiation into muscle and fat cells. The ideal candidate will have hands-on experience in animal cell culture and a passion for contributing towards sustainable seafood production.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, characterize and optimize stable and high-performing cell lines from fish and crustacean species.
• Perform primary cell isolation, culture maintenance and adaptation to suspension conditions.
• Design and execute experiments to assess cell growth, viability and differentiation
• Optimize and standardize protocols for cell line characterization, including morphology, proliferation and functional assays.
• Source and handle aquatic species at various developmental stages for cell line isolation.
• Maintain accurate experimental records and contribute to technical reports and scientific publications.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate cell line development with bioprocess optimization.
• Experience in vendor management, sourcing reagents or negotiating with external partners would be a plus.
  
  

Core Competencies & Skills

• Strong background in animal cell culture techniques, including primary cell culture, stem cells and suspension culture.
• Experience in fish or crustacean cell line development is highly preferred.
• Familiarity with microscopy, flow cytometry, molecular biology techniques and cell-based assays.
• Knowledge of bioreactors, scalable cell culture processes and serum-free media development is a plus.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced research environment.
• Strong analytical skills, problem-solving abilities and attention to detail.
  
  

Qualifications & Experience

• Master’s degree in Biology, Life Sciences or a related field with 2+years of relevant industrial experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in Biology, Life Sciences or a related field with 5+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Prior experience in biotechnology, bioprocess development or cultivated seafood research is advantageous.
  
  

You will work directly with other members of our small but growing team to do cutting-edge science and will have the autonomy to test new ideas and identify better ways to do things.