Research Software Engineer, Data Fabric & Ontology

Schlumberger Limited; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Schlumberger Limited in Sunnyvale, CA is seeking a Research Software Engineer to help lead the Data Fabric & Ontology arc. You will design and build proof-of-concept systems for data fabric, ontologies, knowledge graphs, and agentic data management, translating findings into a clear position for SLB's future adoption.

This hands-on role requires ownership from inception to delivery, collaboration with Big Tech and startup ecosystems, and leadership to shape the Foundations Lab’s technical

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in Computer Science, Data/Information Science, or a related field - or equivalent demonstrated depth.
• 8+ years building production-grade data, distributed, or ML systems, with deep expertise in several of: data platforms and pipelines, knowledge graphs / graph databases, semantic technologies and ontologies, LLM/RAG and agentic systems, or cloud-native distributed systems.
• A track record of taking ambiguous, open-ended problems from concept to working system.
• Strong written and verbal communication - you can turn a technical result into a decision-useful point of view.

Responsibilities

• Identify - Track the frontier of data fabric, ontology, and knowledge infrastructure; spot genuinely groundbreaking technology before it becomes mainstream.
• Translate - Build proof-of-concept systems that de-risk ideas, then form a clear, evidence-based opinion on what SLB should adopt, watch, or ignore.
• Embed - Partner with other STIC labs, SLB business units, and the external ecosystem to transfer knowledge and catalyze adoption of validated technology.
• Shape technical direction for the Data Fabric & Ontology theme - generating ideas, defining new research directions, and owning projects end to end.
• Collaborate with AI engineers and researchers to integrate ML and agentic capabilities into the broader data landscape.
• Establish thought leadership - disseminating knowledge through talks, tutorials, and internal briefings across SLB.
• Provide technical mentorship and raise the bar for engineering craft across the lab.

Skills

Distributed systems

Knowledge graphs

Semantic technologies

LLM/RAG

Cloud-native

Education

MS or PhD in Computer Science/related field

8+ years building production-grade data/ML systems

Tools

Graph databases

Iceberg/Delta open table formats

Kafka/Spark

Kubernetes

Job description

Schlumberger Limited in Sunnyvale, CA is seeking a Research Software Engineer to help lead the Data Fabric & Ontology arc. You will design and build proof-of-concept systems for data fabric, ontologies, knowledge graphs, and agentic data management, translating findings into a clear position for SLB's future adoption.

This hands-on role requires ownership from inception to delivery, collaboration with Big Tech and startup ecosystems, and leadership to shape the Foundations Lab’s technical