Full-Time Machine Learning Engineer

Machine Learning Engineers at Sign-Speak help develop and deploy the AI systems that power our sign language recognition and communication technologies.

Our machine learning systems operate in demanding environments where accuracy, reliability, computational efficiency, and end-to-end latency are critical., * Develop, train, evaluate, and improve machine learning models used in our sign language recognition and communication systems.

• Implement and experiment with machine learning architectures and techniques described in research papers.
• Optimize machine learning models for accuracy, latency, throughput, and computational efficiency.
• Develop and improve GPU-accelerated training and inference pipelines.
• Apply optimization techniques such as model quantization, pruning, and other performance improvements.
• Deploy and maintain machine learning models in production environments.
• Develop and optimize models for execution on local devices, including smartphones and other edge computing platforms.
• Integrate machine learning models into real-time applications.
• Improve machine learning infrastructure, model serving, and deployment workflows.
• Investigate performance bottlenecks related to model execution, memory utilization, and hardware acceleration.
• Evaluate tradeoffs between model accuracy, inference speed, and computational resource requirements.
• Write and execute technical design documents.
• Collaborate with the research and engineering teams to translate experimental models into production-ready solutions., Sign-Speak will provide a work-issued laptop, monitor, and other standard workstation equipment.

Additional development equipment or access to specialized computing resources will be provided based on the needs of the position.

Disclaimer

• All requirements are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities.
• This description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee(s) occupying this position.
• Employees will be required to follow any other position-related instructions and perform other position-related duties as reasonably requested.
• Sign-Speak reserves the right to add to or revise an employee’s duties in accordance with applicable law.
• This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an at-will employment relationship.

Pay: $120,000.00 - $160,000.00 per year

We are looking for a Machine Learning Engineer who combines experience in machine learning research with strong software engineering and model deployment skills.

The ideal candidate has experience training machine learning models, implementing research papers, optimizing model performance, and deploying models in production environments.

This engineer should also have a strong understanding of hardware accelerators, particularly GPUs, and experience optimizing machine learning workloads for efficient inference.

Experience deploying models directly on devices, such as smartphones, is particularly valuable as we continue developing AI technologies that can operate across different environments and hardware platforms.

This engineer will help us expand our machine learning research and development capacity while bringing additional expertise in model optimization, quantization, machine learning operations, and on-device computing.

We don’t particularly care which machine learning frameworks or technical stacks you’re most familiar with, as long as you have strong foundational knowledge and experience working with widely used tools.

However, it’s important to be ready for intensive onboarding. We aim to get new engineers up and running as quickly as reasonably possible., * Degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Engineering, or equivalent professional experience. Preferred PhD.

• Experience developing, training, and evaluating machine learning models.
• Proficiency in Python and familiarity with commonly used machine learning frameworks.
• Experience implementing or adapting machine learning techniques from research papers.
• Understanding of neural networks, deep learning architectures, and model optimization.
• Experience developing or deploying machine learning models in production or other performance-constrained environments.
• Strong understanding of GPUs and hardware-accelerated machine learning.
• Familiarity with model inference optimization and performance benchmarking.
• Understanding of software engineering principles, backend systems, and machine learning pipelines.
• Willingness to learn and work in a fast-paced startup environment.

Preferred Areas of Technical Experience

• PyTorch, TensorFlow, or similar machine learning frameworks.
• GPU computing and optimization, including CUDA.
• Deep learning model training, fine-tuning, and evaluation.
• Model quantization, pruning, distillation, and compression.
• Model inference optimization using technologies such as ONNX Runtime or TensorRT.
• Machine Learning Operations (MLOps), model serving, and deployment pipelines.
• On-device machine learning deployment using Core ML, TensorFlow Lite/LiteRT, or similar frameworks.
• Experience optimizing models for mobile GPUs, NPUs, or other edge accelerators.
• Real-time machine learning inference and low-latency AI applications.
• Computer vision, video understanding, human pose estimation, or related applications.
• Sequence modeling, multimodal machine learning, or transformer-based architectures.
• Distributed model training and cloud-based GPU infrastructure.
• Performance profiling, memory optimization, and hardware-aware model development.
• Knowledge of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (D/HH) community is always preferred, but if you’re unfamiliar with the community, we’ll help you learn!, This position requires regular use of a computer and related equipment. A reliable internet connection is required.

Base Salary: 120,000-160,000 annually, * Dental insurance

• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance
• Vision insurance

Sign-Speak is a fast-growing startup on a mission to improve communication between the Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities and the hearing world. Our innovative language software recognizes sign language and translates it into spoken language, and vice versa, using machine learning.

We’re proud to have raised institutional funding and received funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), and we’re positioned for continued growth.

At Sign-Speak, we’re a fun and compassionate team, but we’re also extremely hardworking. We’re looking for individuals who are as dedicated to our mission as we are and who are willing to put in the effort to help us achieve our goals.

If you’re a highly skilled and motivated software engineer who’s passionate about using technology to make the world a more accessible place, we encourage you to apply.

As part of our team, you’ll have the opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology, collaborate with a diverse and talented group of individuals, and make a real difference in people’s lives.

We offer a dynamic and supportive work environment that values innovation, creativity, and teamwork. If you’re ready to join a team that’s making a real impact in the world, we want you to be a part of Sign-Speak.