ML Research Scientist
Fast Facts
Handshake is seeking a Machine Learning Research Scientist to lead impactful research in AI, publishing work on frontier models while collaborating with top AI labs globally.
Responsibilities: Key responsibilities include publishing research papers, creating benchmarks, and advancing the science of data and evaluations for AI.
Skills: Required skills include a Ph.D. in ML/AI or related fields, strong publishing history in top venues, and practical experience with LLMs and AI environments.
Qualifications: Preferred qualifications include a keen interest in developing high-quality software and benchmarks as well as experience in collaborative research settings.
Location: The position is based in San Francisco, California, with in-office work expected.
Compensation: $320000 - $365000 / Annually
About Handshake
Handshake is the career network for the AI economy. 20 million knowledge workers, 1,600 educational institutions, 1 million employers (including 100% of the Fortune 50), and every foundational AI lab trust Handshake to power career discovery, hiring, and upskilling, from freelance AI training gigs to first internships to full-time careers and beyond. This unique value is leading to unparalleled growth; in 2025, we tripled our ARR at scale.
Why join Handshake now:
- Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel
- Work hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world’s top educational institutions
- Join a team with leadership from Scale AI, Meta, xAI, Notion, Coinbase, and Palantir, among others
- Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue
About the Role
Untangling the science of Data & Evaluations for Frontier AI
Thanks to our massive network of the world’s top experts in all domains, the demand for human data from Handshake AI has exploded (with revenue growing from 0 to well over 9-figures in the first year and growth only accelerating since). Now the world’s top AI Labs are looking to Handshake for advice on how to leverage human expertise to make frontier models more useful for everyone, and we are forming a leading research group to advance the science of Data and Evaluations for AI.
You will:
- Publish papers, open source software, and do bleeding-edge open science on AI agents, LLMs and frontier multimodal models, RL environments, post-training, …
- Work with all of the top AI Labs in the world and understand/shape what their researchers are prioritizing (uniquely, you get to work on research at a company whose customers are top AI researchers)
- Create public benchmarks that meaningfully measure AI progress, leveraging thousands of the world’s top experts in different domains from the Handshake network to construct the most representative/high-quality benchmark.
- Shape the frontier of AI through high-impact research on topics that matter: how to measure/value data, how to effectively evaluate AI, what shapes of data are most effective as AI advances, what makes effective training/RL environments, post-training data recipes.
Desired Capabilities
- Based in San Francisco, and excited to work in the office.
- Ph.D. in ML/AI, data science, or related fields.
- Publications in top AI/ML venues like NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR.
- Builders who love to tinker with LLMs/Agents and ship high-quality software, benchmarks/datasets, research, blogs.
Perks
Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supported—and thrive at work and in life.
The below benefits are for full-time US employees.
🎯 Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company
💰 Financial Wellness: 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching
🍼 Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching
💝 Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend
📚 Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development
💻 Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office
🏝 Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days, winter #ShakeBreak where our whole office closes for a week!
🤝 Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses
Explore our mission, values, and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers.
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Our mission at Handshake is to give all students the chance to build the career they want, no matter where they’re from or what school they attend.
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