Development Economist

Alignerr; Johannesburg; Remote; ZAR 905,000 - 1,810,000; Part time

Job summary

Alignerr, powered by Labelbox, is seeking experienced development economists to help shape how AI understands global economics. You will review AI-generated content on poverty, inequality, growth, and development, providing expert feedback to improve accuracy and real-world relevance.

This is a fully remote, hourly contract with 10–40 hours per week, offering flexible scheduling. Ideal candidates have 3+ years in development economics and a strong command of global economic issues.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in development economics teaching, research, or practice
• Strong command of global economic issues and development theory
• Ability to evaluate written economic reasoning critically
• Comfort with structured review and feedback tasks
• Self-motivated, reliable and able to meet deadlines independently

Responsibilities

• Review and evaluate AI-generated development economics questions, answers, and explanations used in AI training
• Assess quality of economic reasoning across poverty, inequality, growth theory and global development
• Identify errors, oversimplifications or contextual gaps in content
• Provide structured, expert feedback to improve accuracy, rigor, and real-world relevance
• Apply academic or field experience to validate complex economic scenarios
• Work independently and asynchronously to complete task-based assignments on your own schedule

Skills

Development economics

Global economic issues

Data interpretation

Critical evaluation

Structured review

Self-motivation

Education

Graduate degree in Economics/International Development

Tools

Data annotation workflows

Job description

About The Role

We're looking for experienced development economists to help shape how AI understands global economics. Your expertise will directly influence the accuracy, depth, and nuance of AI systems tackling some of the world's most complex economic challenges — from inequality and poverty to growth and international development.

Development Economist (AI Training)

We're looking for experienced development economists to help shape how AI understands global economics. Your expertise will directly influence the accuracy, depth, and nuance of AI systems tackling some of the world's most complex economic challenges — from inequality and poverty to growth and international development.

This is a fully remote, flexible contract role that lets you contribute meaningfully to cutting-edge AI research on your own schedule.

• Organization: Alignerr (Powered by Labelbox)
• Type: Hourly / Task-Based Contract
• Location: Remote
• Commitment: 10–40 hours/week

What You'll Do

• Review and evaluate AI-generated development economics questions, answers, and explanations used in AI training
• Assess the quality of economic reasoning across topics like poverty, inequality, growth theory, and global development
• Identify errors, oversimplifications, or contextual gaps in AI-generated content
• Provide structured, expert feedback to improve accuracy, rigor, and real-world relevance
• Apply your academic or field experience to validate complex economic scenarios
• Work independently and asynchronously to complete task-based assignments on your own schedule

Who You Are

• 3+ years of experience teaching, researching, or practicing development economics
• Strong command of global economic issues, development theory, and data interpretation
• Able to critically evaluate written economic reasoning and identify where it falls short
• Comfortable working with structured review and feedback tasks
• Self-motivated, reliable, and able to meet project deadlines independently

Nice to Have

• Graduate degree in Economics, International Development, or a related field
• Experience working in the field, with NGOs, or in international policy settings
• Familiarity with AI systems, content evaluation, or data annotation workflows

Why Join Us

• Work on cutting-edge AI projects with top research labs and help set the standard for economic reasoning in AI
• Fully remote and flexible — work on your own terms, from anywhere in the world
• Freelance autonomy with meaningful, intellectually stimulating work
• Contribute to AI that better understands the global challenges that matter most
• Potential for ongoing work and contract extension as projects evolve