Lead AI Research Scientist - NLP

Placements24; Johannesburg; Hybride; ZAR 1 500 000 - 2 300 000; Plein temps

Avantages offerts par ce poste

Stock options

Competitive salary

Health benefits

Hybrid work model

Professional development

Résumé du poste

Placements24 is seeking a Lead AI Research Scientist (NLP) based in Johannesburg to spearhead cutting-edge NLP research and guide a team of researchers and engineers.

You will design and implement state-of-the-art NLP models, lead publications, and drive research from ideation to deployment in a hybrid Johannesburg setting.

Qualifications

• PhD or MSc in Computer Science, AI, ML, Computational Linguistics, or related field.
• Minimum 7 years of NLP research experience with leadership/senior role.
• Proven publications in NeurIPS/ICML/ACL/EMNLP.

Responsabilités

• Lead and mentor AI researchers and engineers focused on NLP.
• Design, develop, and implement state-of-the-art NLP models and algorithms.
• Advance research in LLMs, transformers, and deep learning for text.
• Oversee research lifecycle from ideation to deployment.
• Collaborate with product/engineering to translate research into features.
• Publish findings in top AI conferences/journals.
• Stay updated on NLP/ML advancements.
• Shape the strategic direction of the company's AI research.

Connaissances

NLP

Leadership

Python

Research

TensorFlow

PyTorch

HuggingFace

SpaCy

Formation

PhD in CS/AI/ML

Outils

TensorFlow

PyTorch

HuggingFace

SpaCy

Description du poste

About the Role

Our client, a cutting-edge technology firm at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation, is seeking an exceptional Lead AI Research Scientist specializing in Natural Language Processing (NLP). Based in our dynamic **Johannesburg, Gauteng, ZA** office, this role is instrumental in driving groundbreaking research and development in advanced NLP models and applications. You will lead a team of talented researchers and engineers, pushing the boundaries of what's possible in areas such as text generation, sentiment analysis, machine translation, and conversational AI. We are looking for a visionary leader with a deep theoretical understanding and proven practical experience in NLP, ready to shape the future of AI-driven communication solutions. This is an exciting opportunity to work in a collaborative, fast-paced environment in **Johannesburg, Gauteng, ZA**, contributing to impactful projects that will define the next generation of intelligent systems.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a team of AI researchers and engineers focused on NLP.
• Design, develop, and implement state-of-the‑art NLP models and algorithms.
• Conduct cutting‑edge research to advance the state‑of‑the‑art in areas like large language models (LLMs), transformer architectures, and deep learning for text.
• Oversee the entire research lifecycle, from ideation and experimentation to prototyping and deployment.
• Collaborate with product management and engineering teams to translate research breakthroughs into deployable features.
• Publish research findings in top‑tier AI conferences and journals.
• Stay abreast of the latest advancements in NLP and machine learning.
• Contribute to the strategic direction of the company's AI research efforts.

Requirements

• Ph.D. or Master's degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Computational Linguistics, or a related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of research experience in Natural Language Processing, with a significant portion in a leadership or senior role.
• Proven track record of publications in leading AI/NLP conferences (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, ACL, EMNLP).
• Deep understanding of deep learning frameworks (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch) and NLP libraries (e.g., Hugging Face, spaCy).
• Expertise in areas such as LLMs, sequence‑to‑sequence models, attention mechanisms, and text representation.
• Strong programming skills in Python.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and collaboration skills.
• Experience working in a hybrid or agile development environment in **Johannesburg, Gauteng, ZA**.

Benefits

Our client offers a highly competitive salary, performance bonuses, stock options, and comprehensive health and wellness benefits. Employees enjoy access to cutting‑edge research facilities, continuous learning opportunities, and a vibrant company culture in **Johannesburg, Gauteng, ZA**. This hybrid role allows for a balance between in‑office collaboration and remote flexibility. Professional development and conference attendance are strongly encouraged.