Principal AI Researcher
Role
We’re looking for a Principal AI Researcher to join our Attribution Team, where you’ll design and develop algorithms and solutions for source attribution and hallucination detection. In this role, you will work closely with ML engineers, research scientists, and product teams to power answer analysis, source attribution, and compensation models for millions of users with fast, accurate, and comprehensive services.
As Principal AI Researcher, you’ll be leading efforts to combine Natural Language and Multimodal Content Understanding, LLMs, search, reasoning and inference to build efficient, performant and scalable solutions for source attribution. This is a high-impact role focused on AI/ML, Natural Language Inference, and significant ownership in both technical decision-making and long-term architecture.
Responsibilities
Design, build and scale algorithms for content understanding, inference, entailment, relationship mining, retrieval, etc. in production-grade attribution stack.
Post-train foundation models (LLMs, VLMs) for content understanding and attribution solutions. Prototype, validate, and iterate rapidly on solutions to problems related to content understanding and source attribution.
Develop efficient extraction and indexing pipelines for deep understanding and representation of content for entailment and source verification in AI generated answers and other NLU scenarios.
Contribute to optimizing performance and latency for both real-time and batch use cases.
Support identifying and addressing bottlenecks in the attribution stack to improve response times and system efficiency.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate LLMs and attribution components into B2B and B2C services / applications.
Evaluate and integrate modern frameworks and tools to accelerate development.
Guide architectural decisions, mentor team members, and uphold engineering excellence.
Author technical papers or patents.
Qualifications
PhD degree in AI or related field, or equivalent practical experience.
8+ years of experience in software engineering, with a focus on NLP/NLU, Symbolic and/or neural networks & reasoning topics, AI/ML and distributed systems.
Hands-on experience building and deploying content understanding and inference systems.
Experience working on high reliability, observability, and monitoring of deployed systems is a plus
Deep knowledge of Entity, Event, Proposition extraction, NLI, KGs.
Experience with Search (OpenSearch, etc.) & Graph (Neo4J, etc.) databases.
Strong coding skills in Python and/or other backend languages (e.g., Rust, Java).
Experience with vector search, embedding pipelines, and dense retrieval techniques.
Excellent problem-solving, analytical, and debugging skills.
Strong sense of ownership, ability to work independently, and a self-starter mindset in fast-paced environments.
Passion for building impactful technology aligned with our mission.
Preferred Qualifications
Proficiency in PyTorch, JAX, or other deep learning framework.
Experience with various LLM post-training techniques.
Significant experience with semantic search, embedding models, and prompt engineering.
Publications at top-tier AI conferences (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, CVPR, ICLR).
Experience with proof, justification or compliance use cases.
Previous work on systems handling millions of users or queries per day.
Familiarity with cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or Azure) and containerization tools (Docker, Kubernetes).
Work Environment
Location: This position is on-site. This role is based at our Bellevue WA office location, and employees are expected to work on-site during regular business hours.
Compensation
The compensation for this position will be competitive and commensurate with experience. The estimated salary range for this role is 250,000 - 325,000 USD.
What We Offer
Opportunity to work at the forefront of AI technology
Collaborative and innovative work environment
Competitive salary and benefits package
Professional development and growth opportunities
Chance to make a significant impact on the company's success
Equal Employment Opportunity
ProRata is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All employment decisions are made based on qualifications, merit, and business needs.
California Specific Notices
At-Will Employment: Employment at ProrataAI is at-will. This means that either the employee or the employer may terminate employment at any time, with or without cause or prior notice.
Salary Disclosure: In compliance with California law, salary information is provided to ensure transparency and fairness.
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA): ProrataAI complies with the CCPA. Personal information collected during the recruitment process will be used for employment purposes only.
*This open position is not eligible for Company sponsorship of a visa that would require a new H-1B visa petition that is subject to the $100,000 payment requirement announced in the Presidential Proclamation titled “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” dated September 19, 2025 (or any extensions or modifications of the Proclamation).