AI Data Project Manager (B2B Contract)

Toloka; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 96,000 - 179,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

On-site LA

B2B contractor via Ontop

Travel expenses covered

Job summary

Toloka AI in Los Angeles is seeking a Freelance AI Data Project Manager to lead a virtual cross-functional delivery team and manage client communications end-to-end. You will own project execution, coordinate engineers and supply managers, and ensure high-quality data workflows for our clients.

This on-site, full-time independent contractor role offers collaboration with AI industry leaders, a dynamic team, and varying projects across languages and domains.

Qualifications

• Experience leading technical cross-functional teams.
• Proven track record managing complex projects from discovery to adoption.
• Client-facing experience with strong communication skills.
• Agile mindset with ability to switch domains quickly.
• Consulting/Tech/Competitors background is a plus.
• Solid understanding of LLMs and model lifecycle.
• Proactive in suggesting process improvements in AI space.

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of all delivery team projects including data quality and timelines.
• Lead cross-functional delivery to keep projects on track and risks addressed.
• Own operations: internal/external comms, planning, summaries and status updates.
• Drive team motivation and pursue efficiency improvements.
• Roll out delivery improvements and gather feedback for ongoing optimization.

Skills

Technical cross-functional teams

Managing complex projects

Client facing experience

Agile mindset

Consulting/tech background

LLMs lifecycle understanding

AI industry experience

Job description

At Toloka AI we create data that powers leading GenAI models and innovations. We work with frontier labs, big tech, renowned AI startups, enterprises and non-profit research organizations worldwide. We use a combination of Experts + Crowd + Tech Platform to teach AI models to reason and evaluate their efficacy and safety. We have experts in more than 50 different domains - from doctors and lawyers to physicists and engineers - and boast one of the most diverse global crowds, representing over 100 countries and speaking 40+ languages. We are a well-funded startup with an enviable portfolio of clients including Anthropic, Amazon, Microsoft, Poolside, Recraft, and Shopify.

Recently, we secured strategic investment led by Bezos Expeditions and Nebius Group with participation from Mikhail Parakhin, CTO of Shopify and board advisor to leading GenAI companies, who now serves as our Chairman of the Board. Our remote-first team is globally distributed around the world: USA, UK, the Netherlands, Serbia, and more.

About the position

We're seeking a Freelance AI Data Project Manager based in Los Angeles to join our Delivery team and help build, drive, and maintain solutions for our clients.

Joining us in this role means you will lead a virtual cross-functional team and manage successful project implementation end to end. This involves both client communication and internal coordination.

The team consists of talented engineers, supply managers, and other functions involved on an as-needed basis. This is a key role for us to ensure we deliver the best possible experience for our clients and continue growing the business.

Example Projects

• SFT (supervised fine tuning) data generation pipeline producing thousands of prompts and completions weekly across several languages and domains of knowledge;
• Evaluation pipeline helping to estimate LLMs’ responses quality and reaching a throughput of hundred thousands weekly;
• A red-teaming project helping to collect malicious prompts of different kinds to ensure models’ safety.

Key Responsibilities

• Take ultimate ownership for all delivery team projects, including data quality, delivery timelines, unit economics and overall transparency for stakeholders;
• Lead a cross-functional delivery team ensuring projects are on track, any issues and risks are highlighted and resolved proactively;
• Own operations of the delivery team: including internal and external communication, activities planning, posting summaries and status updates, conducting retros etc.;
• Drive and motivate the team, seek out change to increase the organization’s efficiency;
• Help roll out improvements to the delivery team focussing on increased adoption and providing feedback for further improvements.

Qualifications

• Experience leading technical cross-functional teams;
• Experience managing complex projects including discovery, decomposition, scope planning, implementation and adoption;
• Client facing experience;
• Being generally agile, able to switch quickly to new domains and subjects;
• Consulting, Tech, Competitors background is a big plus;
• Good understanding of LLMs and their life cycle in particular;
• Experience and proactiveness in suggesting process changes is appreciated;
• Proven experience in the AI space, including working with clients and managing teams or projects at scale;

What we can offer

• Full-time independent contractor engagement (B2B) through the Ontop contractor platform, working via your own company or business entity;
• On-site role based in Los Angeles (40 hours per week), with periodic travel across the city and surrounding areas to meet with clients. All business travel expenses are covered by the company;
• Work at the leading edge of AI development, alongside a dedicated and dynamic team of experts;
• Projects with customers that are AI industry leaders and well-known household names;
• Friendly community.

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