Synthetic / Process Chemist at Mercor

Synthetic / Process Chemist | $65–75/hr | Worldwide Remote

Mercor is building a panel of chemistry and chemical safety experts to evaluate and red-team frontier AI models. This task-based contractor role is ideal for experienced synthetic or process chemists who can reliably distinguish routine professional chemistry questions from potentially harmful ones — and articulate that distinction clearly in writing.

What You'll Do

• Write challenging single-turn prompts across three risk levels: benign, dual-use, and adversarial
• Evaluate AI-generated responses against defined policy standards and judge whether each was handled appropriately
• Draft reference answers — including the correct response and the technical reasoning behind it

Relevant Backgrounds

We're looking for practitioners who have actually run and scaled chemical routes, not generalists. Strong candidates may have experience in:

• Synthetic route design and development in pharmaceutical, agrochemical, or fine chemicals
• Process chemistry and reaction engineering — optimization, kinetics, and impurity control
• Scale-up from bench to pilot to plant, including associated safety reviews
• Precursor sourcing, controlled-substance registration, or regulatory chemistry
• Method development and troubleshooting in GMP or equivalent quality environments

Beyond Technical Expertise

This is writing-intensive work. Every judgment requires a clear written rationale accessible to a non-specialist audience. Prior technical writing, published research, or expert witness experience is a strong signal — please include a writing sample or link with your application.

Note: You will be reading and writing about misuse scenarios for sustained periods. Experts are fully briefed in advance, and you may pause or step away at any time without penalty.

Important Before Applying

This work must not draw on classified, export-controlled, or NDA-protected information. If you hold such obligations, please disclose them in your application — you may still be a strong fit, and the scope can be adjusted accordingly.