Code Poets

Code Poets is a 30-person software development shop based in Wrocław, Poland, founded in 2013. The company specializes exclusively in the life sciences sector—biotech, pharma, and chemical research—and hires engineers with backgrounds in biology, chemistry, or both. Many are PhD-qualified. They staff projects through a team extension (staff augmentation) model, placing individual developers or small squads into client organizations on a flexible, pay-per-hour basis.

The company was established by Adrian Zamorski (CEO) and Kamil Śliwak (Co-founder and Senior Developer). Co-founder Śliwak contributed to the Ethereum Foundation's Solidity project and speaks at blockchain conferences. The operation is relatively small but intentional: Code Poets rejected blockchain and other sectors in favor of a narrow focus on life sciences, which they claim gives their engineers domain knowledge competitors lack.

Services and capabilities

Code Poets offers one primary engagement model: team extension (staff augmentation). You hire individual developers or small teams on an hourly basis ($50–$130 per hour depending on seniority, background, experience, team size, and contract length) with a three-month minimum, 12 months preferred. Billing is monthly based on reported hours, with no recruitment fees, benefits, or overhead charges passed to the client.

Their stated expertise spans cheminformatics, bioinformatics, computer-aided drug design (CADD), data management, and AI/ML. The technology stack includes Python, PostgreSQL, FastAPI, Django REST Framework, React, Angular, Vue.js, RDKit, Biopython, AutoDock, PyMol, NumPy, SciPy, and open-source chemistry tools (ChEMBL, Open Babel). They also work with Docker, Git, and standard web frameworks.

Recruiting a developer typically takes 21 days. Code Poets conducts live coding interviews and lets clients make the final hire decision. They offer a satisfaction guarantee: if a developer underperforms in the first month, Code Poets replaces them at no cost. Contracts include a 30-day termination clause, and hourly rates are renegotiated only once per year, so pricing remains stable across a contract term. Developers are fluent in English and work remotely from Wrocław (CET timezone).

Notable work

Code Poets has maintained long-term engagements with major life sciences firms. Over three years, they've deployed 16 engineers to L7 Informatics for the L7 Enterprise Science Platform, an all-in-one research and operations system. Their scope includes custom applications for clinical workflows, notebook tools similar to Jupyter, and a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) handling experiment tracking and report generation. L7's VP of Engineering, James Ryan, said: "Code Poets had and has found excellent and appropriate resources for us, all of whom have been talented."

For EMD Millipore Corporation (Merck), Code Poets spent five years building Synthia, retrosynthesis software that helps chemists find synthetic paths to target molecules. The system accepts molecular inputs with constraints (stop rules, inventory filters, iteration limits) and returns ranked synthesis pathways. A Merck director noted they "see [Code Poets] as a high-value provider."

Other clients include Iambic Therapeutics (AI/ML platform for drug discovery; one engineer, two years), deepmatter (ICSYNTH, a computer-aided synthesis design tool; two engineers, two years), Metabolon (curation and data work; one engineer ongoing), and QIAGEN (Workflow Configuration Tool; one engineer). Victoria Lee, Senior Global Product Manager at QIAGEN, reported: "They give great technical insights and deliver tasks on time. We see great improvement in terms of feature improvements, traffic and revenue."

How they work

Code Poets operates as a remote-first, distributed team. Recruitment is customized to each project's tech stack and domain requirements. Once hired, developers are assigned to the client's team and remain there (Code Poets does not pull developers mid-project to serve other clients). The company ties billing to actual hours worked via monthly reports, and the client pays nothing for vacation, sick leave, recruitment, or bad hires. The 30-day termination clause gives both sides an exit; if the fit is poor, Code Poets replaces the developer free of charge. Contracts require three months minimum, though 12 months is preferred. Rates range from $50 to $130 per hour. On-boarding typically begins within days; developers deliver value immediately, though the overall recruitment cycle averages three weeks.

Team and credentials

Code Poets employs around 30 people. Co-founders Adrian Zamorski and Kamil Śliwak lead the company. Zamorski handles strategy and execution; Śliwak, a blockchain expert, serves as Senior Developer. The leadership team also includes Magdalena Zamorska (COO), Joanna Diaków (HR), Julia Foremnik-Kapica (Marketing), and Agata Janusz (Office Manager). The company achieved teal organization status in 2019 and was named one of Poland's best software companies by Clutch that same year. In 2020, Code Poets won the Sandoz hackathon and secured a project with the Ethereum Foundation (Solidity). The firm is ISO-registered (NIP: 8952068133, REGON: 363584646, KRS: 0000598357).