Founding Machine Learning Engineer

Clera

$220K — $300K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 3-10 years of experience in ML Engineering, Applied Science, or Research Engineering
  • Proficiency in Python and major ML frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX)
  • Strong understanding of ML fundamentals including data preprocessing and model optimization
  • Hands-on experience with distributed systems and cloud ML infrastructure (AWS, GCP, Azure)
  • Familiarity with MLOps tools like Weights & Biases or MLflow
  • Experience working with large datasets and high-throughput systems
  • Self-motivated with a proactive approach to building new systems.

Responsibilities

  • Build and optimize end-to-end ML pipelines, from data ingestion to deployment
  • Implement and fine-tune LLMs, embeddings, and generative models
  • Develop efficient training and inference systems using distributed computing
  • Collaborate with data and product teams to drive measurable ML impact
  • Contribute to model monitoring and evaluation practices
  • Establish best practices in model versioning, reproducibility, and scalability

Benefits

  • Work in a founding-level role at an early-stage company
  • Opportunity to shape technical culture and infrastructure from day one
  • Collaborative environment with a small, high-ownership team
  • Work directly on projects that serve frontier AI labs
Full Job Description
About the Role

This is a founding-level ML engineering role at an early-stage AI data and services company, building core machine learning systems from the ground up alongside a small, high-ownership team. You'll bridge research and engineering to design, train, and ship production-grade models that directly serve frontier AI labs - and you'll help shape the technical culture and infrastructure from day one.
What You'll Do
  • Build and optimize end-to-end ML pipelines, from data ingestion through to deployment.
  • Implement and fine-tune LLMs, embeddings, and generative models for real-world applications.
  • Develop efficient training and inference systems leveraging distributed compute.
  • Partner with data and product teams to translate ideas into measurable ML impact.
  • Contribute to model monitoring, evaluation, and continual learning frameworks.
  • Establish best practices in model versioning, reproducibility, and scalability.
What We're Looking For
  • 3-10 years of experience as an ML Engineer, Applied Scientist, or Research Engineer.
  • Proficiency in Python and at least one major ML framework: PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX.
  • Strong grasp of ML fundamentals - data preprocessing, feature engineering, model training, and optimization.
  • Hands-on experience with distributed systems and cloud ML infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or Azure).
  • Familiarity with MLOps tooling such as Weights & Biases or MLflow.
  • Comfort working with large datasets and high-throughput systems.
  • A bias for action, ability to work autonomously, and genuine enthusiasm for building from scratch.
Compensation & Benefits

Base salary of $220,000 - $300,000 USD annually. Visa sponsorship is not available for this role.
Location

On-site in Mountain View, California, United States.

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