San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Senior/Staff Applied AI Scientist & Researcher Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed st…
Skills: Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, Python, PyTorch
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Senior/Staff Data Scientist Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are act…
Skills: Python, R, SQL, Machine Learning, Statistical Analysis
United States · Remote OK
$170k–$270k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Principal Software Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are act…
Skills: Full stack development, Technical leadership, React, Node.js, Python
United States · Remote OK
$125k–$200k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Customer Success Professionals at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are active…
Skills: Customer Success, Account Management, Customer Retention, SaaS, Customer Onboarding
United States · Remote OK
$120k–$220k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Product Manager Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are active…
Skills: Product Strategy, Product Vision, Go-to-market Strategy, User Research, MVP Development
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
$125k–$225k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Controllers at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively hiring senior fi…
Skills: Accounting Operations, Financial Reporting, GAAP, Revenue Recognition, Audit Management
United States · Remote OK
$125k–$225k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Account Executives (SMB/MM) at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively …
Skills: Full-cycle sales, B2B sales, SaaS, Pipeline management, Lead generation
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Full Stack Software Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups th…
Skills: Full Stack Development, React, Node.js, Python, JavaScript
United States · Remote OK
$100k–$200k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Product Marketing Leaders at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively hi…
Skills: Product positioning, Go-to-market strategy, Messaging, Sales enablement, Market research
New York, New York, United States · Hybrid
$125k–$225k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Account Executives (SMB/MM) at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively …
Skills: Full-cycle sales, B2B sales, SaaS, Pipeline management, Lead generation
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Security Engineer (Senior/Staff) Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that ar…
Skills: Security Engineering, Cloud Security, Application Security, Python, Go
New York, New York, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Staff Product Designer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively…
Skills: Product Design, UX/UI Design, Design Systems, Figma, Sketch
United States · Remote OK
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Product Designer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are activ…
Skills: Product Design, UI/UX Design, Visual Design, Figma, Sketch
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Staff Product Designer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively…
Skills: Product Design, UX/UI Design, Design Systems, Figma, Sketch
United States · Remote OK
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Senior/Staff Applied AI Scientist & Researcher Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed st…
Skills: Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow
New York, New York, United States · Hybrid
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Senior/Staff Data Scientist Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are act…
Skills: Python, R, SQL, Machine learning, Statistical modeling
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Front-End Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are act…
Skills: JavaScript, TypeScript, React, Vue.js, Angular
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Forward Deployed Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are activ…
Skills: Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, Go
San Francisco, California, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Back-end Software Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that…
Skills: Backend architecture, Distributed systems, API development, Microservices, Cloud infrastructure
New York, New York, United States · Hybrid
$170k–$250k/yr
Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Founding Product Designer Roles at VC-Backed Startups 🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are activ…
Skills: Product Design, UI/UX Design, Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite
San Francisco, California, United States • Hybrid
Sign up with Clera and we'll reach out the moment a role actually fits you — no more spraying applications into the void.
You will research, develop, and evaluate machine learning methods to improve product capabilities and customer outcomes. You will also partner with engineering teams to translate successful experiments into production-ready systems.
Candidates must have 5+ years of experience in machine learning, artificial intelligence, or applied research. A strong foundation in deep learning, statistics, and proficiency in Python with frameworks like PyTorch or TensorFlow is required.
🛑 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively hiring Applied AI Scientists and Researchers. If you have any questions, please direct inquiries to [email protected].
At SignalFire, we partner with top early-stage startups that are shaping the future of technology. Our portfolio spans 200+ innovative companies across AI, cybersecurity, healthtech, fintech, developer tools, and enterprise SaaS.
We’re looking to connect with exceptional Senior and Staff Applied AI Scientists and Researchers who are excited about developing advanced AI capabilities, solving complex technical problems, and translating emerging research into differentiated products.
By joining SignalFire’s Talent Network, your profile will be shared with our portfolio companies, giving you visibility into exclusive early-stage opportunities that may not be publicly listed.
We’re looking for scientists and researchers who are:
✔ Passionate about advancing the capabilities and real-world applications of artificial intelligence
✔ Experienced in developing, adapting, and evaluating modern machine learning models
✔ Excited to translate research and experimentation into production-ready product capabilities
✔ Comfortable operating at the intersection of research, engineering, product, and customer needs
✔ Interested in solving open-ended technical problems in fast-moving startup environments
Research, develop, and evaluate machine learning methods that improve product capabilities and customer outcomes
Design experiments to test new model architectures, training approaches, data strategies, and system designs
Adapt foundation models through fine-tuning, post-training, prompt optimization, retrieval, or other techniques
Develop evaluation frameworks and benchmarks for model quality, reliability, safety, and performance
Build prototypes and proofs of concept that demonstrate the potential of emerging AI techniques
Partner with AI/ML engineers and software engineers to translate successful experiments into production systems
Improve model accuracy, reasoning, latency, efficiency, robustness, and cost
Curate, generate, and evaluate datasets used for training, fine-tuning, and model assessment
Investigate model failures, edge cases, and unexpected behavior to identify opportunities for improvement
Stay current with relevant research and determine which advances can create practical product value
Communicate findings, tradeoffs, and technical recommendations to product, engineering, and executive stakeholders
Mentor other scientists and contribute to the company’s research culture, technical standards, and AI roadmap
Publish research, contribute to open-source projects, or represent the company within the broader technical community where appropriate
While each startup has its own hiring criteria, many Senior and Staff Applied AI Scientist and Researcher roles in our network look for:
5+ years of experience in machine learning, artificial intelligence, applied research, or a related technical field
Strong foundation in deep learning, statistics, optimization, and experimental design
Experience developing or adapting models for real-world product applications
Expertise in one or more areas such as natural language processing, generative AI, computer vision, multimodal learning, reinforcement learning, recommendation systems, or speech
Proficiency in Python and modern machine learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX
Experience with model training, fine-tuning, post-training, evaluation, or inference
Ability to design rigorous experiments and draw sound conclusions from incomplete or ambiguous results
Track record of translating research concepts into prototypes, production systems, or measurable product improvements
Ability to collaborate closely with research, engineering, product, and domain experts
Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly
Staff-level candidates may be expected to define research direction, lead cross-functional initiatives, and influence broader AI strategy
Advanced degree in computer science, machine learning, statistics, mathematics, or a related field may be preferred, although equivalent applied experience may be considered
Languages & Frameworks: Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX, Hugging Face, scikit-learn
Models & Techniques: Large language models, transformers, multimodal models, diffusion models, reinforcement learning, recommendation and ranking systems
Model Adaptation: Fine-tuning, reinforcement learning from feedback, preference optimization, distillation, synthetic data, prompt optimization
AI Systems: Retrieval-augmented generation, agents, tool use, structured generation, reasoning systems, model routing
Evaluation & Experimentation: Offline and online evaluation, human evaluation, benchmarking, red teaming, interpretability, model observability
Data & Infrastructure: Spark, Databricks, Snowflake, vector databases, distributed training, GPUs, Kubernetes
Models & Platforms: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, open-source foundation models, and proprietary model architectures
Submit your application to join SignalFire’s Talent Ecosystem.
We review applications on an ongoing basis to identify strong candidates.
If there’s a match, a SignalFire talent partner or a leader from one of our startups may reach out directly.
No match yet? We’ll keep your profile on file for future Senior and Staff Applied AI Scientist and Researcher roles across our portfolio.
Built like startups we fund
SignalFire is the first venture capital firm built like a technology company to better solve for the needs of founders. The core of its value-add is Beacon, the AI engine SignalFire has been refining since the firm's launch in 2013. Beacon tracks more than 600 million employees and 80 million companies to guide the fund’s investing and assist portfolio companies with scaling their teams and revenue. SignalFire also helps early-stage founders navigate the toughest parts of building a company at every stage, with expert advisors, 100 skill-building workshops a year, and an in-house team of recruiters, data scientists, PR experts, and go-to-market leaders. With over $2.1 billion in assets under management, SignalFire focuses on investing from seed to scale. The firm’s key sectors include AI/ML, developer tools, B2B SaaS, healthcare, cybersecurity, and consumer. https://www.signalfire.com/disclosures
Offices: 501 2nd St, 100, San Francisco, California 94107, US
Built like startups we fund
SignalFire is the first venture capital firm built like a technology company to better solve for the needs of founders. The core of its value-add is Beacon, the AI engine SignalFire has been refining since the firm's launch in 2013. Beacon tracks more than 600 million employees and 80 million companies to guide the fund’s investing and assist portfolio companies with scaling their teams and revenue. SignalFire also helps early-stage founders navigate the toughest parts of building a company at every stage, with expert advisors, 100 skill-building workshops a year, and an in-house team of recruiters, data scientists, PR experts, and go-to-market leaders. With over $2.1 billion in assets under management, SignalFire focuses on investing from seed to scale. The firm’s key sectors include AI/ML, developer tools, B2B SaaS, healthcare, cybersecurity, and consumer. https://www.signalfire.com/disclosures
Offices: 501 2nd St, 100, San Francisco, California 94107, US
