Biosecurity & Synthetic Biology Expert — AI Evaluation

About OpenTrain

OpenTrain is the #1 platform for people building careers in AI training and data labeling. We help experts find specialized projects, build a unified portfolio of AI-training work, and grow a durable freelance career in a fast-moving field.

We support transparent, fair engagements for domain specialists who want to shape how AI systems are trained and evaluated — from part-time contributors to senior subject-matter advisors.

Why AI training matters for biosecurity

AI systems learn from human examples and guidance; domain experts provide the judgments that determine how models reason about real-world risks. In biosecurity and synthetic biology, expert input directly shapes model behavior around safety, dual-use concerns, and public-health impact modeling.

Work in AI training is remote, flexible, and accessible: many projects let you set hours and contribute expertise without prior AI experience, while giving you an impact on how future tools will handle sensitive biological topics.

The role

OpenTrain and our client OpenTrain are recruiting Biosecurity and Synthetic Biology Experts to develop evaluation frameworks and benchmarks used to train and assess AI systems. This is a contractor, part-time engagement designed for professionals with advanced domain experience.

You will apply your operational knowledge to create realistic misuse taxonomies, evaluation scenarios, severity ratings, and perform detailed reviews of draft benchmarks and model outputs.

• Commitment: 20+ hours per week (remote, global)
• Employment types: Contractor, Part-time
• Language requirement: English

What you'll do

You will translate real-world biorisk expertise into concrete evaluation artifacts and reviewer guidance that AI training teams use to rate model responses and write supervised fine-tuning prompts.

• Develop a comprehensive taxonomy for biological misuse scenarios, covering current and emerging threats.
• Design safe, realistic evaluation scenarios to test biosafety measures and dual-use risk protocols.
• Establish severity ratings for biological risks to support nuanced threat modeling and mitigation strategies.
• Perform false-negative reviews of draft benchmarks to ensure protective and pragmatic outcomes.
• Advise on lab safety protocols, pathogen containment strategies, and dual-use governance best practices.
• Contribute written and verbal insights to documentation, scenario development, and cross-functional communication.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to contextualize biological misuse risks for public-health impact modeling.

Requirements

Candidates must meet the core domain qualifications below. These are essential because the work requires high credibility and operational judgment in safety-critical biological contexts.

• 5+ years of experience in biosecurity, biorisk management, synthetic biology, or a closely related field.
• Advanced degree, professional certification, or equivalent operational experience in biosecurity, synthetic biology, or public health.
• Deep familiarity with laboratory safety protocols, dual-use research governance, and biological threat modeling.
• Hands-on operational experience (examples: biorisk officer, synthetic biology researcher, public-health biodefense specialist, government biosecurity advisor, lab director).
• Demonstrated ability to develop and review threat scenarios and risk taxonomies with high domain credibility.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills and experience working with multidisciplinary teams.

Helpful background & seniority

While the minimum is 5+ years, candidates with 8–20 years of experience are preferred for senior contributor roles. Senior contributors will be expected to lead scenario design and provide higher-level governance guidance.

Compensation, tasks & next steps

Compensation is hourly, USD: listed range $50–$90 per hour (hourlyRate: $90). This role is pay-per-hour and contractor-based. Tasks include evaluation ratings and prompt/response writing for supervised fine-tuning (label types: EVALUATION_RATING, PROMPT_RESPONSE_WRITING_SFT).

How to apply: create or sign into an OpenTrain account, submit your profile highlighting the required biosecurity/synthetic biology experience, and include examples of scenario development or biorisk guidance. No prior AI training experience is required; subject-matter expertise is the primary qualification.

• Data type: Text
• Client: OpenTrain (project-focused engagement)