Expert Operations

Abaka AI; Mountain View (CA); On-site; USD 80,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Health insurance

Dental

Vision

PTO

Flexible schedule

Job summary

Abaka AI is hiring Expert Operations to own end-to-end processes for identifying, evaluating, onboarding, and supporting expert contributors on AI data projects. You will match qualified experts from our platform to project needs and ensure engagements are staffed with high-quality contributors.

You will work with Project Managers, Operations, and Research teams to define scalable sourcing, onboarding, and community management processes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 1+ years in AI data annotation, quality assurance, reviewer operations, project operations, talent operations, recruiting, or related roles.
• Experience on AI data projects involving annotation, model evaluation, RLHF, preference ranking, or human feedback is highly preferred.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with contributors.
• Strong judgment and attention to detail evaluating contributor quality and project fit.
• Highly organized with ability to manage multiple pipelines simultaneously.
• Comfortable with spreadsheets, CRMs, ATS, and operational tools.

Responsibilities

• Source and identify qualified experts from Abaka's talent platform for AI data projects across domains.
• Review contributor profiles, work history, assessments, and qualifications to evaluate project fit and staffing readiness.
• Conduct interviews to assess communication skills, technical knowledge, and contributor quality.
• Guide contributors through onboarding, training, and project setup for a smooth onboarding.
• Partner with Project Managers to understand project requirements and staff high-quality contributors.
• Build and maintain a pipeline of qualified experts for current and future needs.
• Serve as primary point of contact for contributors, providing timely communication and issue resolution.
• Track staffing metrics, onboarding progress, contributor performance, and KPIs to improve efficiency.
• Develop scalable workflows for expert sourcing, evaluation, onboarding, and engagement.
• Leverage AI tools to improve sourcing and matching processes.

Skills

AI data annotation

Communication

Attention to detail

Project operations

Staffing pipelines

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

CRMs

ATS systems

Spreadsheets

Operational tools

Job description

Abaka AI is built on one mission: to be the world’s most trusted data partner for AI companies. More than 1,000 industry leaders across Generative AI, Embodied AI, and Automotive AI rely on us to power their data pipelines. With our headquarters in Silicon Valley—and teams in Paris, Singapore, and Tokyo—we support global partners with fast, reliable, and scalable data solutions.

Our offerings include a diverse catalog of off-the-shelf datasets (image, video, multimodal, reasoning, 3D, and beyond) as well as comprehensive data collection and annotation services. Whether teams need raw data, curated datasets, or full-cycle data engineering, Abaka AI provides the foundation for building high-performance AI systems.

About the Role

We're hiring for Expert Operations to help build and scale the expert workforce behind some of the world's leading AI models. In this role, you will own the end-to-end process of identifying, evaluating, onboarding, and supporting expert contributors for AI data projects across a wide range of domains.

Working closely with Project Managers, Operations, and Research teams, you'll match qualified experts from our talent platform to project needs, ensuring every engagement is staffed with high-quality contributors who can deliver exceptional results. You'll serve as a key point of contact throughout the contributor lifecycle, building strong relationships while creating a seamless onboarding experience.

As an early member of our Expert Operations team, you'll help define scalable processes for expert sourcing, evaluation, onboarding, and community management. Your work will directly impact the quality, speed, and success of the AI data projects powering frontier foundation models for some of the world's leading AI companies.

If you thrive in fast-paced environments, enjoy working with people, and are passionate about building high-performing communities, this role offers an opportunity to make an immediate and lasting impact.

Responsibilities

• Source and identify qualified experts from Abaka's talent platform for AI data projects across domains including text, image, video, audio, coding, reasoning, multimodal AI, and domain‑specific expertise.
• Review contributor profiles, work history, assessments, and qualifications to evaluate project fit and staffing readiness.
• Conduct interviews to assess communication skills, technical knowledge, and overall contributor quality.
• Guide contributors through onboarding, training, and project setup to ensure a smooth and successful onboarding experience.
• Partner closely with Project Managers to understand project requirements and efficiently staff high-quality contributors.
• Build and maintain a strong pipeline of qualified experts to support both current and future project needs.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for contributors, providing timely communication, support, and issue resolution throughout the project lifecycle.
• Track staffing metrics, onboarding progress, contributor performance, and operational KPIs to continuously improve efficiency and quality.
• Develop and refine scalable workflows for expert sourcing, evaluation, onboarding, and contributor engagement.
• Leverage AI tools and automation to improve operational efficiency, communication, and talent matching processes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 1+ years of experience in AI data annotation, quality assurance, reviewer operations, project operations, talent operations, recruiting, or related operational roles.
• Experience working on AI data projects involving annotation, model evaluation, RLHF, preference ranking, or human feedback is highly preferred.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to build trust and maintain strong relationships with contributors.
• Strong judgment and attention to detail when evaluating contributor quality and project fit.
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple hiring, onboarding, and staffing pipelines simultaneously.
• Comfortable working with spreadsheets, CRMs, applicant tracking systems, and operational tools.
• Self‑driven, adaptable, and comfortable operating in a fast‑paced startup environment with a strong sense of ownership and urgency.
• Experience using AI tools to improve sourcing, communication, or operational workflows is a plus.

The base salary range for this position is $80,000 – $130,000 USD annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies, and experience. Base pay is one part of the total package provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work at Abaka AI. This role is eligible for equity, as well as a comprehensive benefits package, including health, dental, vision, PTO, and a flexible work schedule.