Associate Software Engineer (AI/Machine Learning)

Relay is transforming the physical world into a searchable, actionable data asset. We’ve moved beyond "Big Radio's" analog past to build the Relay SOAR™ Platform, which treats voice and movement as the new keyboards of the enterprise. By capturing the "Human Signal," we enable frontline teams in hospitality, manufacturing, and healthcare to move from reactive chaos to proactive control.

Ranked among the fastest-growing tech companies in North America, we are looking for the next generation of "Relayers" to help us digitize the final frontier of the workforce.

Why Start Your Career at Relay?

• Work at the Edge of Innovation: We just secured our 100th patent. You’ll work with technologies spanning AI-driven noise suppression, real-time language translation, and advanced IoT connectivity.
• Massive Scale: Be part of a platform that processes over 1 billion data points every week. Our tech isn't just "cool"—it’s essential infrastructure for the global economy.
• LIT Culture (Learning, Impact, Teamwork): We pride ourselves on an environment where early-career professionals have a seat at the table and see their work impact global brands immediately.
• Hyper-Growth Trajectory: With 461% growth and new C-suite leaders who have led successful IPOs, you are joining a rocket ship at the perfect time.
• Best-in-Class Perks: Based in our high-tech Raleigh headquarters, you’ll enjoy 100% company-paid benefits, a 401(k) match, and a hybrid work model that balances flexibility with high-energy collaboration.

Ready to help us build the Intelligent System of Action? 

Here at Relay, our technology stack solves complex problems. We use a diverse set of languages, including Erlang, Java, C, C++, JavaScript, and occasional Python scripts. We are agile in our responsiveness to user and business needs, not for the sake of adhering to agile orthodoxy, but being pragmatic.

We are looking for an intellectually curious engineer to join our team as we scale. We bias towards action, while maintaining the balance between speed and technical debt. We are not afraid to take on big challenges, but we strive for the simplest solution. Quality is a constant focus. We operate what we build and hold ourselves accountable for the code we write. As a startup, we use nimble and lean teams, and you’ll make meaningful contributions to the product very quickly! There are lots of opportunities to learn new things, and we are constantly delivering to customers. Scale is a key focus for our team. As we see continued growth, team members are expected to think about and improve the scalability of all aspects of the product. You’ll focus on new product development of our communication platform. The platform consists of the following components, each with its own team. There are opportunities to move across teams.

Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify business challenges and opportunities that can benefit from machine learning solutions. Conduct research and stay updated on the latest advancements in machine learning to recommend and implement appropriate approaches.
• Design, build, and fine-tune machine learning models, algorithms, and statistical analysis to solve complex business problems. Utilize various techniques such as supervised, unsupervised, and deep learning to ensure optimal model performance.
• Prepare and preprocess large-scale datasets to extract relevant features and improve model training efficiency and accuracy. Implement data cleaning, feature engineering, and data augmentation techniques.
• Conduct rigorous evaluation and testing of machine learning models to assess their effectiveness and robustness. Optimize model parameters and hyperparameters to achieve optimal performance and generalization.
• Collaborate with the software engineering team to integrate machine learning models into the production environment. Ensure scalability, reliability, and efficiency of deployed models.
• Establish mechanisms for monitoring the performance of deployed models and identifying potential issues. Proactively maintain and update models as necessary to adapt to changing data and business requirements.
• Ensure compliance with data privacy regulations and implement security measures to protect sensitive information.
• Maintain comprehensive documentation of model development, methodologies, and results to facilitate knowledge sharing and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including product managers, data scientists, and software engineers, to define requirements and support product development with your machine learning expertise.

Experience, qualifications, and skills (what you’ll have):

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science or a related field
• Strong theoretical and practical understanding of core Machine Learning and Deep Learning concepts (e.g., architectures, optimization/training, evaluation)
• 1+ years of development experience in Python and a modern machine learning framework such as PyTorch or JAX (including experience in coursework/research / internships)
• Experience using the Linux tool chain
• Understanding of typical web API protocols and transports (e.g., HTTP, Websockets, SSE)
• Experience with managing 24/7 Linux systems, cloud hosting providers (AWS), infrastructure-as-code concepts (Terraform, Ansible, etc), distributed systems, observability tools (OpenSearch, Grafana)
• Desired, but not required, is experience with advanced LLM topics: such as LoRA and quantization, functional programming: such as Erlang and Elixir, systems programming: such as Rust and C++, distributed systems, and key-value databases.

About us: Relay culture, benefits & perks:

First and foremost, our culture hinges on Relayers getting LIT up in an environment that fosters learning, impact, and teamwork (LIT) where we can do the best work in our lives. We call this BWIML (pronounced bee wimmel = Best Work In My Life)!

It's truly amazing what engaged team members can achieve together. Our ever-evolving list of benefits and perks means you'll be able to integrate work into your whole life, focus on health, perform impactful work, grow and learn in your role, look after yourself/your family, and invest in your future. 

At Relay, we offer...

• 100% Paid Insurance Health, Dental, Vision, Long/Short Term Disability, and Life Insurance benefits for you and those who depend on you
• Generous Paid Time Off
• 401(K) Savings Plan + Company Match
• Baby Cash Reward + Paid Parental Leave
• Wellness Perks, including a world-class onsite fitness center with instructor-led classes + locker room, as well as endless outdoor amenities, whether tennis, basketball, cycling, or pickleball is your jam
• Free Snacks and Fun Times
• Latest tech, standing desks, and all the accessories and software you need to succeed in your role

The Relay Hybrid Work Model

At Relay, relationships are at the core of everything we do - and this translates to how we approach our customers and our work internally. Relay strives to be a long-term relational partners versus a transactional vendor to our customers. You will be encouraged to get in front of our customers and/or attend a trade show as a Relayer, regardless of your role. 

Internally, Relayers strive to build authentic, caring, and trusted relationships with one another.

With these principles in mind, and because we believe relationships are formed more quickly and deeply in person, we greatly value the power of collaborating with our customers on-site at their properties, and with each other in our spectacular and amenity-rich office.

Our relational approach is also at the heart of why we ask all Relayers in our hybrid model to work from the office a minimum of 3 days per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. During your onboarding you should expect to be in the office daily in order to build relationships and your knowledge base as you ramp into the organization!

Underpinning all of this is the core principle of flexibility.  If it’s best for your mission, a given week to work remotely more often, we encourage our team members to maintain open lines of communication with their managers and find a solution that supports those needs in a given timeframe/season.