AI Engineer & Researcher - Product Analytics & Experimentation Design

About xAI

xAI’s mission is to create AI systems that can accurately understand the universe and aid humanity in its pursuit of knowledge. Our team is small, highly motivated, and focused on engineering excellence. This organization is for individuals who appreciate challenging themselves and thrive on curiosity. We operate with a flat organizational structure. All employees are expected to be hands-on and to contribute directly to the company’s mission. Leadership is given to those who show initiative and consistently deliver excellence. Work ethic and strong prioritization skills are important. All engineers and researchers are expected to have strong communication skills. They should be able to concisely and accurately share knowledge with their teammates.

About the Role

As an AI Engineer & Researcher - Product Analytics & Experimentation Design at xAI, you will be at the forefront of transforming user feedback and behavioral data into actionable insights that drive rapid product evolution. This role combines deep expertise in mathematics, statistics, and creative problem-solving to dissect complex, noisy signals from our AI systems—such as production logs, user interactions, and engagement metrics—without directly training models. You'll design clever experiments to test hypotheses, quantify what users love or loathe about our products, and recommend precise course corrections to enhance satisfaction and performance. By accelerating iteration cycles through smart experimentation, you'll empower our teams to make data-informed decisions that keep our AI at the cutting edge of user delight.

Focus

• User Insight Extraction: Dive into production logs and behavioral data to identify patterns of dissatisfaction, using mathematical and statistical tools to distill why users may not engage with or appreciate aspects of our AI models.
• Experimentation Design: Craft and execute fast-paced experiments, such as A/B tests or multivariate trials, to validate hypotheses on product features and measure their impact on user experience.
• Noisy Signal Analysis: Apply advanced stats and creative analytical techniques to interpret ambiguous data streams, uncovering hidden correlations and causal factors that inform product improvements.
• Actionable Recommendations: Synthesize findings into clear, evidence-based strategies for product decisions, prioritizing quick wins and long-term enhancements to boost model usability and appeal.
• Rapid Iteration: Optimize experimentation pipelines for speed, enabling frequent testing and refinement cycles that allow the team to pivot based on real-time user signals and evolving needs.

Ideal Experience

• Mathematical and Statistical Mastery: Profound skills in math, probability, statistics, and inference, with a proven ability to apply them creatively to real-world problems in dynamic tech environments.
• Experimentation Expertise: Hands-on experience designing and analyzing product experiments (e.g., A/B testing, causal inference), with a track record of accelerating iteration in AI or software products.
• Analytical Creativity: Demonstrated talent for teasing insights from noisy, high-volume data sources like logs and metrics, leading to innovative solutions that address user pain points without model training.
• Product Decision Support: Background in using data-driven methods to guide strategic choices, such as identifying suboptimal features and proposing fixes in fast-paced settings.
• Collaborative Agility: 3+ years in AI engineering or research roles at innovative companies, where you've balanced technical rigor with creative thinking to deliver quick, impactful iterations.

Location

• We hire engineers in Palo Alto. Our team usually works from the office 5 days a week but allow work-from-home days when required. Candidates are expected to be located near Palo Alto or open to relocation.

Interview Process

After submitting your application, the team reviews your CV and statement of exceptional work. If your application passes this stage, you will be invited to a 15-minute interview (“phone interview”) during which a member of our team will ask some basic questions. If you clear the initial phone interview, you will enter the main process, which consists of four technical interviews:

1. Coding assessment in a language of your choice.
2. 2x post-training technical sessions: These sessions will be testing your ability to formulate, design and solve concrete problems in training data for post-training.
3. Meet the Team: Present your past exceptional work and your vision with xAI to a small audience.

Our goal is to finish the main process within one week. All interviews will be conducted via Google Meet.

Annual Salary Range

$180,000 - $440,000 USD

xAI is an equal opportunity employer.

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