R&D Engineer (Saudi & Gulf Arabic)

SESTEK tr; Turkey; On-site; TRY 180,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

SESTEK recruits an R&D Engineer in Türkiye to join the Arabic TTS team, shaping dialect-aware models and robust training pipelines. You will translate linguistic feedback into usable improvements and contribute to G2P and text normalization efforts.

You should have ~3 years in software or ML with Python, NLP or speech tech experience, strong English, and familiarity with ML frameworks. Collaboration with Unifonic and client support are key aspects.

Qualifications

• ~3 years of experience in software development; experience in speech technologies (TTS/ASR), NLP, or ML is strongly preferred.
• Native proficiency in Arabic, including strong command of MSA and native-level command of Saudi/Gulf Arabic (Najdi ideal).
• Good command of English; Turkish is a plus.
• Solid coding skills (e.g., Python) and familiarity with ML frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Develop, train, and test Arabic TTS models; contribute to model training pipelines and evaluations.
• Translate linguistic and dialect feedback into concrete technical improvements.
• Contribute to Arabic text normalization, diacritization (tashkeel), and grapheme-to-phoneme (G2P) components.
• Research new modules related to voice, text, and other data in company products, and implement them.
• Research and integrate third-party components required by our products; enable integration of company products with different platforms and provide support.
• Answer technical questions from assigned clients; implement enhancements and improvements in line with customer demand.
• Update and maintain installed programs at customer sites; strive to increase product performance.
• Implement coding and optimizations for product integrations; handle improvements and bug fixes within the R&D team.
• Collaborate closely with the Sestek and Unifonic teams and provide ongoing TTS expertise throughout the project.

Skills

Python

ML frameworks

NLP

Speech technologies

TTS/ASR

Education

Bachelor's degree, computer science/engineering

Tools

Kubernetes

Git/version control

Data pipelines

MLOps

Job description

We are looking for an R&D Engineer based in Türkiye to join our Arabic Text-to-Speech (TTS) team. This role offers the opportunity to combine strong engineering and machine learning skills with expertise in Arabic, particularly Saudi and Gulf Arabic varieties (with Najdi being a strong advantage.

Who we are

We are a global technology company, developing AI-powered conversational solutions that empower organizations to be data-driven, enhance efficiency, and offer superior customer experiences. We are an R&D center and our solutions are developed by a team of over 100 engineers specializing in text-to-speech, speech recognition, natural language processing, and voice biometrics technologies. As of 2022 we are a part of Unifonic, a leading Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) provider, and we have grown into an international organization with over 500 dynamic team members. We have a customer base of 500 enterprises across 20 countries in the US, EU and MENA regions.

What we expect

• Develop, train, and test Arabic TTS models; contribute to model training pipelines and evaluations.
• Translate linguistic and dialect feedback (from linguists, customers, and internal reviews) into concrete technical improvements.
• Contribute to Arabic text normalization, diacritization (tashkeel), and grapheme-to-phoneme (G2P) components.
• Research new modules related to voice, text, and other data in company products, and implement them.
• Research and integrate third-party components required by our products; enable integration of company products with different platforms and provide support.
• Answer technical questions from assigned clients; implement enhancements and improvements in line with customer demand.
• Update and maintain installed programs at customer sites; strive to increase product performance.
• Implement coding and optimizations for product integrations; handle improvements and bug fixes within the R&D team.
• Collaborate closely with the Sestek and Unifonic teams and provide ongoing TTS expertise throughout the project.

Who we are looking for

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• ~3 years of experience in software development; experience in speech technologies (TTS/ASR), NLP, or machine learning is strongly preferred.
• Native proficiency in Arabic, including strong command of MSA and native-level command of Saudi/Gulf Arabic (Najdi ideal; a neutral, widely understood Saudi Arabic is also a good fit). The candidate should be able to recognize and distinguish Saudi dialects independently or with the support of the Arabic Linguistics Specialist. Note: This role focuses specifically on Saudi/Gulf varieties of Arabic; strong familiarity with these varieties is essential.
• Good command of English; Turkish is a plus.
• Solid coding skills (e.g., Python) and familiarity with ML frameworks.
• Nice to have: broader engineering skills beyond R&D — MLOps, data pipelines, Kubernetes, low-latency APIs, git/version control.
• Strong communication skills — able to work effectively with non-technical stakeholders such as linguists and customers.
• Analytical thinking, solution-oriented, customer-oriented.

At Sestek, we believe in the power of diversity, and inclusive organizational culture. All candidates are considered equally regardless of their race, religion, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national or ethnic origin, marital status, family status, disability, genetic characteristics.

If you would like to know more about our culture, please feel free to visit our LinkedIn Page .

ABOUT SESTEK

SESTEK is a conversational automation company helping organizations with conversational solutions to be data-driven, increase efficiency and deliver better experiences for their customers. SESTEK’s AI-powered solutions are built on text-to-speech, speech recognition, natural language processing and voice biometrics technologies.

US Mailing Address

SESTEK US INC

1401 Pennsylvania Ave STE 105, Box 2185,
Wilmington, DE 19801