Staff Engineer - DS/ML

interface.ai is the industry's-leading specialized AI provider for banks and credit unions, serving over 100 financial institutions. The company's integrated AI platform offers a unified banking experience through voice, chat, and employee-assisting solutions, enhanced by cutting-edge proprietary Generative AI.

Our mission is clear: to transform the banking experience so every consumer enjoys hyper-personalized, secure, and seamless interactions, while improving operational efficiencies and driving revenue growth.

interface.ai offers pre-trained, domain-specific AI solutions that are easy to integrate, scale, and manage, both in-branch and online. Combining this with deep industry expertise, interface.ai is the AI solution for banks and credit unions that want to deliver exceptional experiences and stay at the forefront of AI innovation.

About the Role

We’re looking for an exceptional Data Science & ML Lead to architect and scale next-generation intelligent systems at the intersection of applied research and production engineering. This role involves deep technical ownership across model design, prompt optimization, model evaluation, and intelligent decision-making frameworks that operate in real-world, constraint-driven environments.

The ideal candidate brings a mix of research curiosity, engineering rigor, and product empathy. They are comfortable with uncertainty, driven by first-principles thinking, and passionate about building safe, aligned, and adaptive AI systems at scale.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect data and ML systems that drive intelligent decision-making across high-volume, high-stakes workflows
  
  
• Lead development of robust evaluation pipelines for LLMs and other AI models—measuring task performance, alignment, and user experience
  
  
• Build tools and pipelines to simulate, synthesize, and tune model behaviors at scale
  
  
• Develop judgment systems to assess and refine outputs using human and automated feedback mechanisms
  
  
• Drive model tuning strategies (e.g. prompt optimization, adapter fine-tuning, reward-based learning) with scientific rigor
  
  
• Partner with engineering to build scalable, observable, and compliant ML infrastructure for real-time inference
  
  
• Collaborate cross-functionally to embed safe, explainable, and measurable AI into product interfaces
  
  

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in applied data science or machine learning, with multiple shipped systems or models in production
  
  
• Deep understanding of ML/LLM architecture, training methodologies, and inference optimization
  
  
• Experience with prompt engineering, few-shot learning, or alignment strategies in LLM applications
  
  
• Track record of building robust evaluation systems, feedback loops, and data-driven iteration frameworks
  
  
• Strong foundations in experimentation, statistical reasoning, and A/B analysis
  
  
• Fluent in Python and familiar with ML ecosystems (PyTorch, Hugging Face, LangChain, vector DBs, etc.)
  
  
• Ability to work independently from first principles and execute rapidly in high-ownership environments

Preferred

• Experience integrating ML into compliance- or safety-sensitive products
  
  
• Exposure to multi-agent architectures, generative pipelines, or active learning loops
  
  
• Familiarity with academic literature in AI alignment, judgment modeling, or agentic reasoning
  
  
• Comfort navigating ambiguity and defining new abstractions from scratch

What we value

• Systems thinkers who understand the balance between theoretical elegance and practical constraints
  
  
• Builders who go deep into infrastructure when needed, but don’t lose sight of product utility and UX
  
  
• Researchers who write fast, clean code—and engineers who ask research-grade questions
  
  
• Leaders who mentor generously, challenge assumptions, and move fast with high integrity

Compensation/Benefits

The base salary range for this role will be between $225,000 to $260,000. Final compensation will be determined by a variety of factors, including, but not limited to your location, skills, experience, education, and/or professional certifications. During the phone screening, your recruiter will provide the location-specific salary range for this role. Regardless of your personal situation or where you are in the world, Interface.ai offers comprehensive and great benefits programs to meet your needs:

• Health: medical, dental, and vision insurance and wellbeing resources and programs
• Time away: Public holidays and discretionary PTO package for flexible days off with manager approval
• Financial: 401K, ESPP, Basic life and AD&D insurance, long-term and short-term disability
• Family: parental leave, maternity support, fertility services
• Development: Access to internal professional development resources.
• Additional: 24/7 access to professional counselors, voluntary insurance coverage, exclusive perks and discounts

At interface.ai, we are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all employees and applicants. We celebrate diversity and believe it is critical to our success as a company. We do not  discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or any other legally protected status. All employment decisions at Interface.ai are based on business needs, job requirements, and individual qualifications. We strive to create a culture that values and respects each person's unique perspective and contributions. We encourage all qualified individuals to apply for employment opportunities with Interface.ai and are committed to ensuring that our hiring process is inclusive and accessible.