Chief Scientist, AI/ML

Who We Are

At Gretel, our mission is to build the world’s first developer platform for synthetic data.  Our platform solves the data bottleneck problem for developers, data scientists, and AI/ML researchers across multiple modalities including tabular, time-series, relationship, language and image. Gretel's APIs automatically fine-tune AI models to generate synthetic data on-demand while protecting privacy and maintaining the utility and accuracy of the original data.  

We’re a highly collaborative remote company with employees across the US & Canada. Our innovative and transparent culture offers employees the autonomy, tools, and trust to act like owners and we're looking for a talented Chief Scientist to join our mission!

The Impact You’ll Have

You'll pioneer our applied research trajectory, steering both immediate initiatives and visionary long-term bets . You’ll lead our efforts to develop foundational models for multi-modal data, and the development of cutting-edge technology to automate the process of synthetic data generation that is useful and provably private, using techniques like differential privacy and reinforcement learning from human and AI feedback (RLHF).  

With over 75k developers using Gretel’s platform, millions of models trained, and hundreds of billions of records generated, this is your chance to have a massive impact on the synthetic data industry.

You’ll work in the following areas: 

• Research & Development: Leading the charge in groundbreaking research to architect foundational models, especially for multi-modal data types including tabular, time-series, relational, language, and image data.
• Synthetic Data Innovation: Crafting state-of-the-art methodologies and algorithms for synthetic data generation, emphasizing data privacy and authenticity.
• Privacy Enhancement Techniques: Deploying and innovating around differential privacy methods to ensure that synthetic data protects user privacy while maintaining its utility.
• Reinforcement Learning and AI alignment: Leveraging reinforcement learning from both automated and human feedback (RLHF) to improve and adapt synthetic data generation processes.
• Collaboration & Mentorship: Working closely with Gretel’s product and R&D teams to ensure that research translates into tangible products, and mentoring the next generation of ML/AI researchers and engineers.
• Community & Industry Engagement: Showcasing Gretel's advancements and research at top-tier ML conferences and contributing to open source projects that benefit the wider AI and data privacy community.
• AI Policy: At Gretel, we are right at the heart of fairness and alignment discussions with how businesses use and work with AI models and data. In this role, you will participate in rapidly evolving discussions about AI including fairness, alignment, and policy.
• Strategic Planning: Helping to set the technical direction for the company, balancing short-term product excellence with long-term, visionary projects that push the envelope in the synthetic data domain.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborating with the product, engineering, and customer teams to ensure the research aligns with market needs and Gretel's business objectives.

Requirements

• PhD or equivalent experience in Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, or a related field.
• A strong record of original research contributions, evidenced by first-author publications in top-tier ML/AI conferences and journals, or a demonstrable impact on the industry, such as major open source contributions.
• Proven track record of leading and mentoring research teams, shaping the technical direction, and fostering innovation in a dynamic environment.
• Ability to formulate, communicate, and drive a strategic research vision that aligns with the company's goals and industry trends.
• Deep hands-on experience training Machine Learning models, particularly in areas relevant to Gretel, like LLMs or large multi-modal models.
• Proficiency in presenting complex research findings and strategic insights to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Product mindset and capability to evaluate trade-offs, and pivot research directions based on new findings, industry shifts, or business needs.

Nice To Haves

• Demonstrated success in collaborating with industry partners, academic institutions, or other external groups on joint research initiatives.
• Deep understanding of ethical considerations in AI/ML, especially concerning data privacy and user protection.

We think the best ideas come from the blending of diverse perspectives and experiences, which will lead to a stronger company and advancements in technologies.  We hire individuals whose peers call them subject matter experts, whose curiosity draws them to new edges of their field and who like to laugh.  We are deeply collaborative, apolitical and mission-oriented.

Gretel is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals seeking employment and employees at Gretel are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. 

Accommodations: We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all candidates and employees. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please let your recruiter know.

Compensation

Employee compensation will be determined based on interview performance, level of experience, specialization of skills, and market rate. During the offer discussion, your recruiter will review the finalized base salary, bonus (for applicable roles), benefits and perks (additional information available on our career site), and stock options as they’ll be reflected in the offer letter.