Kennedy McDaniel Bae founded Glassfloor in 2024. Trained as a biologist, she built her career at the intersection of biology, hardware, and software, always drawn to technology with the potential to lower the barriers to scientific innovation and impact. She writes about her broader philosophy of biology, and how automation fits into that, at BioOptimist.
The problem became clear early. Automation can only deliver on that potential when the people operating it actually know how to use it, and most don't. Too few training pathways exist, too few educators have hands-on experience with the systems, and the gap between where automation technology is and where the workforce is keeps widening.
Glassfloor is the response to that gap.
Before founding Glassfloor, Kennedy designed and launched Opentrons for Education at Opentrons Labworks. Since then, Glassfloor's work has included developing the workforce and training strategy for CUNY's AI-BIOME program (an $18.1M NSF-funded initiative building AI-powered lab automation infrastructure), co-developing and co-teaching the SLAS Liquid Handling Bootcamp, and leading development of the first Global Automated Science Education Guidelines, funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and hosted by SLAS. Across these engagements, Glassfloor has reached more than 5,500 students, 38+ educator partners, and 20+ organizations worldwide.