Institut Pasteur and the CNRS are launching a call for a mid-career group leader position in AI in genomics. We are looking for an experienced researcher (typically with > 8 years of research experience post PhD) with a strong background in biomathematics, biophysics and/or computer science, and with leadership in AI/ML in the areas of genome organization, evolutionary genetics, biological sequence analysis, function prediction, sequence design, or metagenomics. The successful candidate will lead a research group at the Institut Pasteur and will hold a National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) position as Research Director.
Background
Institut Pasteur is a non-profit private foundation dedicated to fundamental, interdisciplinary research and to the translation of knowledge for applications in medicine and public health. The institute is committed to nurturing risk-taking and diversity as fundamental principles of transformative discoveries and scientific impact. Current priorities of the institute include infectious diseases threats, environmental transition and health, origins of diseases and health and health and disease at the extremes of life. Institut Pasteur ambitions to further reinforce its leadership in bio-data sciences and AI to tackle groundbreaking computational challenges to help decipher the complexity of biology and diseases.
The CNRS is one of the world’s largest and most prestigious public research institutions, dedicated to advancing knowledge across all scientific disciplines. With over 33,000 staff members and more than 1,100 laboratories in France, the CNRS is internationally recognized for promoting pioneering research and interdisciplinary collaboration and has been home to several Nobel Prize and Fields Medal laureates. It plays a key role in global scientific innovation through partnerships with leading institutions worldwide.
Local context
The selected candidate will become part of the cutting-edge interdisciplinary environment provided by the Department of Computational Biology. This Department comprises 10 research teams with wide expertise, offering a rich collaborative atmosphere. For more details, please visit: Computational Biology – Institut Pasteur.
Institut Pasteur boasts advanced technological and computational infrastructure including a high-performance computing platform (HPC Core Facility – Institut Pasteur) and a large bioinformatics expert Hub of more than 70 research engineers (Bioinformatics and Biostatistics HUB – Institut Pasteur). It is well integrated in the French AI ecosystem, being one of the founding members of the Prairie Paris School of AI (PRAIRIE Institute – Prairie). Working on campus also offers the possibility to have privileged access to rich datasets via collaborative research.
Position
We are looking for highly qualified candidates with proven experience in developing machine learning approaches, mathematical and statistical modelling, or data sciences in genomics. Outstanding candidates with leading expertise in AI for molecular biology but outside the field of genomics will also be considered. Ideal candidates will have a strong focus on developing innovative sequence-based AI/ML models and mathematical modelling approaches to address challenging biological questions.
Applicants should have a minimum of 8 years of experience in research after a PhD (as of the date of submission). Candidates will have to demonstrate excellence in the following areas:
- Scientific production: quality and originality of scientific output.
- Recognition: national and international recognition of research work.
- Leadership: ability to conceive and supervise research project, to mentor PhDs/post-doc researchers and manage collective projects.
- Ability to obtain competitive grants.
- Team management: ability to lead and animate a research team.
Additionally, competitive packages tailored to match the candidate’s experience will be offered. These packages include institutional salaries for a research engineer and for postdoctoral fellows, as well as administrative support. Furthermore, substantial contributions towards running costs and equipment will be provided, along with access to state-of-the-art technology core facilities on campus.
The application template is available here. Applicants must submit their applications along with a minimum of two recommendation letters as a single PDF file to: AIforGenomics2025@pasteur.fr and insb.di@cnrs.fr. The deadline for submitting applications is January 12th, 2026. Short-listed candidates will be contacted in March 2026 for on-campus interviews in April 5-10. The final interview will take place on June 2 and 3, 2026. Interested candidates should contact Gregory Batt (gregory.batt@pasteur.fr), head of the Computational Biology department, and Laurent Essioux (laurent.essioux@pasteur.fr), head of the Center for Research and Resources in Informatics of the Pasteur Institute before submission of their project.
Pre-selected applicants already holding a CNRS position will follow an internal mobility process at CNRS. Non-CNRS applicants will have to apply for a CNRS position at the Research Director DR2 level when the call for applications opens (early-December-early-January) and, before applying, should contact CNRS biology direction at insb.di@cnrs.fr for more information on CNRS recruitment. Information about the open positions will be available soon on https://carrieres.cnrs.fr/concours-externes-des-chercheurs-h-f/.
Commitment to diversity and inclusion
The Institut Pasteur and CNRS are committed to building an inclusive research environment that fosters excellence through diversity. We strongly encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and identities, including those historically underrepresented in science. Career breaks (e.g. parental leave, caregiving, or health-related interruptions) will be fully taken into consideration during the evaluation process.