Lead Machine Learning Engineer, Earth System

The Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence; Washington, Seattle (District of Columbia, WA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 302,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a forward-thinking nonprofit dedicated to leveraging AI for social good. As a Lead Machine Learning Engineer, you will tackle significant challenges in geospatial intelligence, developing cutting-edge models and deploying robust AI tools. This role offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of research and engineering, contributing to impactful projects that address critical global issues like climate change and sustainability. Collaborate with a dynamic team in a culture that values diversity, continuous learning, and ethical AI practices while enjoying a comprehensive benefits package.

Benefits

Health Insurance

Retirement Plans

Commuting Stipends

Fitness Stipends

Paid Time Off

Bonuses

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in machine learning roles.
• Experience in building and scaling enterprise ML/AI systems.

Responsibilities

• Develop foundation models for geospatial intelligence.
• Scale model training and inference for various deployments.

Skills

Machine Learning

Python

C/C++

Geospatial AI

Communication Skills

Education

Bachelor's in Computer Science

Ph.D. in ML/AI

Tools

Cloud Infrastructure

Job description

Persons in these roles are expected to work from our offices in Seattle.

Our base salary range is $200,800 - $301,320, complemented by generous bonus plans, offering a competitive compensation package.

Who You Are:

We are seeking a Lead Machine Learning Engineer passionate about advancing geospatial intelligence.

Who We Are:

We are developing Earth-System (https://allenai.org/earth-system), a platform dedicated to large-scale planetary intelligence. Our mission addresses critical environmental challenges such as climate change, sustainability, food security, humanitarian aid, and conservation through AI. The platform integrates highly mixed-modality geospatial foundation models with scalable deployment infrastructure, analyzing diverse planetary data for tasks like ecosystem mapping, forest loss classification, carbon sequestration, wildfire risk mapping, and land cover change detection.

Your Next Challenge:

We face significant research and engineering challenges requiring expertise and scalable execution:

1. Research Challenges: Developing foundation models for geospatial intelligence, tackling domain adaptation, low-resource settings, high-impact decision-making, and reducing annotation costs for large datasets.
2. Engineering Challenges: Scaling model training and inference responsibly, efficiently, and cost-effectively, especially for users with limited compute or edge deployments.
3. Product & Deployment: Creating robust AI tools enabling scientists, policymakers, and conservationists to generate actionable intelligence with minimal friction.

Ideal Candidate Traits:

• Ability to operate across AI research and production engineering domains.
• Deep experience in foundational machine learning research and deployment at scale.
• Autonomous work style with a bias toward action and quick iteration, ensuring sustainability.
• Enjoyment of collaborative environments.

You will join a rapidly expanding team dedicated to leveraging AI for social good, with industry-leading models in climate, geospatial intelligence, maritime AI, and more.

Our Values:

• Advocates of responsible and ethical AI.
• Committed to open-source initiatives and publishing our work.
• Focused on building AI that empowers users beyond research to make tangible impacts.

Qualifications:

Minimum:

• Bachelor's in Computer Science, ML/AI, or related field, or equivalent experience.
• Experience in building, scaling, and optimizing enterprise ML/AI systems.
• Proficiency in Python, C/C++, or similar languages.
• Ability to communicate AI concepts to non-technical audiences.
• 5+ years in machine learning roles.
• Expertise in geospatial AI, remote sensing, or ML for geospatial trajectories.

Preferred:

• Ph.D. or research background in ML/AI.
• Experience with large-scale cloud infrastructure and deployments.

Physical Demands and Work Environment:

Must meet physical requirements such as remaining stationary, effective communication, detailed observation, and working under deadlines. Accommodations available for disabilities.

About Ai2:

Ai2, founded in 2014 by Paul Allen, is a Seattle-based nonprofit AI research institute dedicated to solving global problems through AI, including foundational research and real-world applications in large-scale models, data, robotics, and conservation.

Our Culture and Benefits:

• We promote continuous learning, diversity, inclusion, work/life balance, collaboration, and transparency.
• Located on Seattle’s water with access to outdoor activities.
• Comprehensive benefits including health insurance, retirement plans, stipends for commuting and fitness, paid time off, and bonuses.

Additional Information:

Ai2 is an Equal Opportunity Employer, participating in E-Verify, and committed to reasonable accommodations under ADA. For accommodations, contact [e-mail].