Contractor, Physical Science Technical Writer

Your Impact at Lila

Science only creates impact when the right people understand it. At Lila Science, our Government sector team sits at the interface between world-class researchers and the government clients and internal stakeholders who need to act on their work. We're looking for a Physical Science Technical Writer who thrives in that space.

Reporting to the Head of Government Partnerships, you'll serve as the essential bridge between our scientists and the people who fund, oversee, and act on their research -- taking highly technical findings, methods, and data and reshaping them into language that is clear, credible, and decision-ready. You'll work closely with our Grants Manager, who leads the full proposal process, to develop the technical and scientific components that sit at the heart of every competitive submission.

You'll also serve as a quality gatekeeper -- someone with enough domain expertise to catch scientific inaccuracies, challenge imprecise claims, and ensure that every deliverable meets the highest standards of technical rigor before it leaves the building.

This is not a documentation-maintenance role. It's a strategic communication role for someone with enough scientific fluency to understand what researchers are saying -- and enough communication skill to make it land with audiences who aren't in the lab. Critically, we're looking for someone who uses AI tools as a force multiplier: a writer who can leverage LLMs, build lightweight automation, or design workflow tools that let one exceptional person do the work of many.

What You'll Be Building

Translate Science for Government Audiences

• Work directly with Lila scientists and engineers to understand their research, then produce briefings, white papers, and executive-level reports that accurately convey the science for government clients, program officers, and agency stakeholders -- adapting tone, depth, and format to the audience.

Proposal & Grant Support

• Partner with the Grants Manager to develop the technical and scientific components of proposal applications (technical narratives, method descriptions, scientific appendices) for DOE and UK-funded research initiatives, ensuring consistency in tone, format, and compliance throughout.

Content Library & Knowledge Management

• Build and maintain a repository of reusable, version-controlled technical content -- vetted scientific descriptions, method summaries, capability statements, and regulatory narratives -- that can be efficiently adapted across proposals and programs.

AI-Augmented Workflows

• Actively use LLMs and similar AI tools to accelerate drafting, editing, and summarization workflows, and design lightweight automations that systematize and scale the technical writing function across programs.

Technical & Regulatory Documentation

• Develop and maintain program documentation (SOPs, risk assessments, V&V plans, test reports, protocol summaries) and regulatory-ready packages aligned to US and UK frameworks, with proper version control and traceability.

Visual Communication

• Create figures, diagrams, flowcharts, and presentation materials that make research milestones, processes, and outcomes immediately legible to non-specialist audiences.

What You’ll Need to Succeed

• Master's degree or higher in a physical science discipline -- chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, physics, or closely related field.
• Demonstrated experience translating complex scientific or technical content for non-technical audiences, ideally in a government, policy, or regulated environment.
• Enough scientific literacy to hold substantive conversations with researchers, accurately represent their work -- including its nuances and limitations -- and push back when claims are imprecise or unsupported.
• Exceptional written communication skills; proven ability to write clearly and concisely for executives, clients, and non-specialist stakeholders.
• Hands-on experience using AI tools (LLMs, AI writing assistants, or similar) in professional workflows -- not just familiarity, but active, habitual use -- including comfort building lightweight tools or automations to streamline repetitive writing and documentation tasks.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple deliverables across parallel programs and tight timelines.
• Eligibility to obtain a US security clearance; active clearance is a plus.

Bonus Points For

• Prior experience writing technical and scientific content for DOE proposals and/or UK funding applications.
• Experience supporting a grants or business development function in a research or government-adjacent organization.
• Familiarity with risk analyses, V&V plans, and technical qualification documentation.
• Ability to create clear figures, schematics, and visual summaries for broad audiences.
• Experience designing or managing a content library or documentation repository.

About Lila

Lila Sciences is the world’s first scientific superintelligence platform and autonomous lab for life, chemistry, and materials science.  We are pioneering a new age of boundless discovery by building the capabilities to apply AI to every aspect of the scientific method.  We are introducing scientific superintelligence to solve humankind's greatest challenges, enabling scientists to bring forth solutions in human health, climate, and sustainability at a pace and scale never experienced before. Learn more about this mission at  www.lila.ai

If this sounds like an environment you’d love to work in, even if you only have some of the experience listed below, we encourage you to apply.

We’re All In

Lila Sciences is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

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A Note to Agencies

Lila Sciences does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Lila Sciences or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Lila Science’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Lila Sciences, and Lila Sciences will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.