Senior Data Operations Engineer

Field AI; Boston; On-site; PHP 7,421,150 - 11,131,725; Full time

Job summary

FieldAI is recruiting a Senior Data Operations Engineer to own the day-to-day data operations tooling, run data collection and annotation sessions, and lead interns and contractors. You’ll collaborate with the Research Operations Partner to scale FAIRI’s data function and set the engineering bar for the team.

You’ll be hands-on across hardware and software, building sensor harnesses, QA scripts, and internal data tooling, while also managing interns and documenting SOPs and processes for data

Qualifications

• Hands-on depth in several listed data ops skills.
• Soldering and cable assembly.
• Motion capture systems such as Vicon/OptiTrack/markerless/IMU.
• Data annotation for robotics or autonomous vehicles.
• QA for hardware and/or software.
• 3D scanning and 3D printing.
• Data collection and human subjects research (IRB/consent familiarity a plus).
• AR/VR development or production.
• Python, Java, or equivalent scripting.
• LIDAR exposure helpful.
• Robotics platforms, sensors, or control.
• Linux command line.
• Blender or Unity.
• Film/TV production.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain data tooling and infrastructure.
• Run and QA data collection sessions and supervise interns/contractors.
• Annotate datasets and surface tooling gaps to drive the roadmap.
• Showcase tooling through demos and coordinate with stakeholders.
• Document SOPs and lab operations; ensure safety and quality.

Skills

Soldering

Motion capture

Data annotation

QA testing

3D printing

IRB/Consent familiarity

Python/Java

Linux

Blender

Unity

Robotics platforms

Tools

Vicon

OptiTrack

3D scanning

Blender

Unity

Job description

About the Role

Field AI is transforming how robots interact with the real world. Our R&D team, the FieldAI Research Institute (FAIRI), is based in Cambridge, MA, where we build risk-aware, field-ready AI systems that unlock general purpose intelligence for robotics.

FAIRI is looking for a Senior Data Operations Engineer to run the day-to-day of our data operations function: building the tooling the pipeline runs on, staying hands-on enough to dogfood and stress-test that tooling yourself, and managing the interns and contractors who carry out the bulk of day-to-day collection and annotation. You’ll work directly with the Research Operations Partner to scale FAIRI’s in-house data function, and you’ll set the technical and operational bar the rest of the Data Operations Engineering team is built around.

What You’ll Do

Data Tooling & Infrastructure — 25%

• Build and maintain hardware sensor suites — sensor harnesses, camera arrays, mounting fixtures, wearable sensor stacks (including soldering and cable assembly).
• Write and maintain QA scripts for in-house and vendor data drops.
• Build and maintain annotation software and other internal data tooling.

Data Collection & Annotation — 25%

• Run motion capture, teleoperation, and human-subjects data collection sessions yourself — the fastest way to dogfood and stress-test tooling and protocols before handing them to the team.
• Annotate robotics/AV datasets (object interaction, contact state, multi-agent) against FAIRI’s evaluation framework.
• Use hands-on collection and annotation work to surface tooling gaps and drive the tooling roadmap above.

Team Management & Documentation — 25%

• Manage and schedule data collection interns and contractors; own day-to-day throughput and quality.
• Onboard and train interns/contractors on equipment, SOPs, and the informed-consent process.
• Write and maintain SOPs and other supporting documentation for data collection, annotation, and lab operations.
• Own first-level QC and escalation for intern/contractor output; flag protocol or safety issues.

Technical Demo Support — 25%

• Learn the product stack and operate various robotic platforms to demonstrate FieldAI FFM (Field Foundation Model) capabilities.
• Support demo planning and execution, coordinating with the Research Operations Partner
• Help produce content showcasing FieldAI’s ability to deploy robots on dull, dirty, and dangerous jobs.
• Troubleshoot hardware and software issues live during demos with important stakeholders.

What You Bring

You don’t need every skill below, but you should bring real, hands-on depth in several of them:

• Soldering and cable assembly
• Motion capture systems (e.g., Vicon, OptiTrack, markerless/IMU)
• Data annotation for robotics or autonomous vehicles
• QA for hardware and/or software
• 3D scanning and 3D printing
• Data collection and human subjects research (IRB/consent familiarity a plus)
• AR/VR development or production
• Python, Java, or equivalent scripting
• LIDAR
• Robotics (platforms, sensors, or control)
• Linux command line
• Blender or Unity
• Film/TV production

Beyond the toolkit:

• Comfortable moving between hardware and software in the same day: genuinely hands-on, not hands-off.
• High ownership: you can take an open-ended ask (“troubleshoot why this data had issues ”) and run with it without much hand-holding.
• Strong documentation habits: you leave SOPs and processes better than you found them.

What Sets You Apart

• Background in film/TV production, game development, data operations, or another field where wearing every hat is normal
• Interest in humanoid robotics and how machines learn from human movement

Why FAIRI

This role sits inside FAIRI’s Research Operations function, supporting the Humanoid Program. It’s built to grow: the Data Operations Engineering track is expected to scale from one person today to a small team over the next 12-18 months, and this hire is a leading candidate for Data Operations Engineering Lead as that team stands up.

Why Join Field AI?

FieldAI is tackling one of robotics’ hardest problems: deploying robots in unstructured, previously unknown environments. Our Field Foundational Models™ advance perception, planning, localization, and manipulation with an emphasis on explainability and safety, so our systems can be trusted where it matters most.

You will work alongside a world‑class team that values creativity, resilience, and bold thinking. We bring a decade‑long track record of real‑world deployments, strong performance in DARPA challenges, and experience from organizations such as DeepMind, NASA JPL, Boston Dynamics, NVIDIA, Amazon, Tesla Autopilot, Cruise, Zoox, Toyota Research Institute, and SpaceX.

Our R&D organization is growing and anchored in Boston, with close collaboration across our teams in Southern California and with colleagues around the US and globally.

Be Part of the Next Robotics Revolution

Solving problems at this scale takes a team as unique as the mission. We are looking for people who push beyond conventional approaches, enjoy tackling tough and ambiguous questions, and bring interdisciplinary perspective. Our success depends on exceptional AI researchers and engineers, as well as strong software developers, product designers, field deployment experts, and communicators who can turn breakthroughs into real capability.

We are headquartered in Mission Viejo (Irvine adjacent), Southern California, with teammates across the US and around the world. Join us to shape the future of embodied intelligence as part of a fun, close‑knit team building systems that work in the real world.

Equal Opportunity

FieldAI celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or any other legally protected status.