Research Scientist Intern - Computational Biology (Seed AI-for-Science) - 2026 Start (PhD)

Responsibilities

Understanding biological structure is central to deciphering the mechanisms of life and advancing drug design. We are developing next-generation, structure-centric, multimodal foundation models that power key applications—from complex structure prediction and functional modeling to de novo molecular design.

We are a cross-disciplinary team of experts in machine learning, structural biology, computational chemistry, and bioinformatics, supported by strong engineering infrastructure and access to large-scale compute resources. We aim to develop open, high-precision, generalizable models that drive breakthroughs in biology and drug discovery.

We are looking for talented individuals to join us for an internship in 2026. Internships at ByteDance aim to offer students industry exposure and hands-on experience. Watch your ambitions become reality as your inspiration brings infinite opportunities at ByteDance.

PhD internships at ByteDance provide students with the opportunity to actively contribute to our products and research, and to the organization's future plans and emerging technologies. Our dynamic internship experience blends hands-on learning, enriching community-building and development events, and collaboration with industry experts.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis - we encourage you to apply early. Please state your availability clearly in your resume (Start date, End date).

Responsibilities:
1) Collaborate closely with a multidisciplinary team of ML researchers, computational biologists, and chemists to tackle cutting-edge scientific challenges in molecular modeling.
2) Contribute to the design, training, and optimization of large-scale models for structure prediction across diverse biomolecular systems, addressing key challenges such as conformational sampling, binding affinity estimation, and de novo molecular generation.
3) Translate insights from structural biology, experimental data, and physical principles into scalable model architectures and generative algorithms.

What We Offer
1) A collaborative, impact-driven environment at the intersection of biology and AI.
2) Access to cutting-edge compute infrastructure and proprietary tools.
3) Opportunities to contribute to open science and transformative technologies in drug discovery.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:
- Currently pursuing a PhD in computational biology, structural biology, or computer-aided drug design (CADD);
- PhD in Computational Biology, Structural Biology, Computer-Aided Drug Design (CADD), Biophysics, or a related field, with publications in top-tier journals or contributions to widely adopted tools.
- Extensive experience with computational tools and workflows in structural or computational biology, including molecular dynamics (e.g., GROMACS, AMBER), docking (e.g., AutoDock, Glide), quantum chemistry (e.g., ORCA, Gaussian), structure prediction and design (e.g., Rosetta, RFDiffusion), or analysis of cryo-EM/X-ray data.
- Hands-on experience integrating wet-lab and computational data, and applying structural or biological insights to address complex biological problems. Proficiency in programming and scientific computing (e.g., Python, C++, bioinformatics pipelines).
- Strong scientific curiosity, a collaborative mindset, and the ability to quickly learn new concepts and tools.

By submitting an application for this role, you accept and agree to our global applicant privacy policy, which may be accessed here: https://jobs.bytedance.com/en/legal/privacy

Job Information

About Us

Founded in 2012, ByteDance's mission is to inspire creativity and enrich life. With a suite of more than a dozen products, including TikTok, Lemon8, CapCut and Pico as well as platforms specific to the China market, including Toutiao, Douyin, and Xigua, ByteDance has made it easier and more fun for people to connect with, consume, and create content.​

Inspiring creativity is at the core of ByteDance's mission. Our innovative products are built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and enrich life - a mission we work towards every day.​

As ByteDancers, we strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our Company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.​

Diversity & Inclusion​

ByteDance is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At ByteDance, our mission is to inspire creativity and enrich life. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.​

ByteDance is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://tinyurl.com/RA-request​

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $60 - $60annually. ​

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Interns have day one access to health insurance, life insurance, wellbeing benefits and more. Interns also receive 10 paid holidays per year and paid sick time (56 hours if hired in first half of year, 40 if hired in second half of year).​

The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.​

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:​

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:​

1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;​

2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and​

3. Exercising sound judgment.​