Director of Frontier AI Research & Deployment

Snorkel AI; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 228,800 - 403,200; Full time

Job summary

Snorkel AI is hiring a Director, Forward Deployed Researcher on the Data-as-a-service team. You will lead a team that partners with frontier AI labs on data problems, scoping training data needs, designing RL environments, and creating evaluation frameworks to translate customer goals into actionable technical plans.

This is a player‑coach role: half leadership, half hands-on work on strategic accounts. You set the technical bar for specifications and playbooks, collaborating with AE management

Qualifications

• 8+ years in applied ML, AI solutions engineering, presales, or research-facing roles.
• 5+ years leading technical ICs, ideally in a presales or SE org.
• Deep knowledge of frontier AI concepts including LLMs, data pipelines, eval methods, RLHF/DPO/RLAIF.
• Proven hiring and talent development experience.
• Experience driving revenue or pipeline goals in a GTM setting.
• Excellent communication; able to coach teams and engage frontier AI researchers.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-moving, ambiguous environment.
• BS in CS, ML, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Recruit, hire, and develop the forward deployed research team with focus on technical quality.
• Set and maintain the technical bar for specs, evaluation frameworks, and customer deliverables.
• Own SE capacity planning and account coverage; partner with AE on deal strategy and pipeline forecasting.
• Establish team processes and playbooks for discovery, spec development, and knowledge sharing.
• Lead technical conversations on strategic accounts, including scoping and solution design.
• Serve as escalation point for technically complex customer situations.

Skills

Applied ML & AI solutions

Presales

Team leadership

Frontier AI

Communication

Ambiguity tolerance

Fast-moving environment

BS in CS/ML

Education

B.S. in Computer Science, Machine Learning, or related field

Job description

Snorkel AI is hiring a Director, Forward Deployed Researcher on the Data-as-a-service team. You will lead a team that partners with frontier AI labs on data problems, scoping training data needs, designing RL environments, and creating evaluation frameworks to translate customer goals into actionable technical plans.

This is a player‑coach role: half leadership, half hands-on work on strategic accounts. You set the technical bar for specifications and playbooks, collaborating with AE management