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Founding Machine Learning Engineer Jobs in Philadelphia, PA

AI / Machine Learning Engineer (Contract) Location: Philadelphia, PA or Charlotte, NC Duration: 6 Months Contract Job Summary We are seeking an experienced AI / Machine Learning Engineer to design ...

Must-Have Skills 3+ years of ML engineering experience -- model training, fine-tuning, or post-training pipelines in research or production Strong Python and deep learning proficiency (PyTorch ...

Must-Have Skills 3+ years of ML engineering experience -- model training, fine-tuning, or post-training pipelines in research or production Strong Python and deep learning proficiency (PyTorch ...

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Founding Machine Learning Engineer information

See Philadelphia, PA salary details

$31.8K

$129.9K

$195.3K

How much do founding machine learning engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 26, 2026, the average yearly pay for founding machine learning engineer in Philadelphia, PA is $129,939.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $102,400.00 and $156,400.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a Founding Machine Learning Engineer?

A Founding Machine Learning Engineer is one of the first technical team members at a startup who specializes in designing, building, and deploying machine learning systems. This role involves working closely with the founders to set the technical direction, build core AI products, and establish best practices for data and model development. In addition to hands-on coding and experimentation, a Founding Machine Learning Engineer often influences product decisions and helps shape the company's engineering culture. The role typically requires a blend of deep technical expertise, startup agility, and a willingness to tackle both high-level strategy and low-level engineering tasks.

What are some unique challenges and expectations for a Founding Machine Learning Engineer in an early-stage startup?

As a Founding Machine Learning Engineer, you'll face the unique challenge of building the company's machine learning infrastructure from the ground up, often with limited resources and rapidly evolving requirements. You'll be expected to wear many hats, from designing and deploying models to setting up data pipelines and collaborating closely with product and engineering teams. Your role will also involve making critical decisions about technology stacks and best practices that will shape the company's technical direction. Additionally, you'll have significant influence on the company's culture and have ample opportunities for growth as the team expands.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Founding Machine Learning Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Founding Machine Learning Engineer, you need deep expertise in machine learning algorithms, software engineering, and data science, often supported by a degree in computer science or a related field. Familiarity with tools such as Python, TensorFlow or PyTorch, cloud platforms, and experience deploying ML models in production are typically required. Strong problem-solving abilities, entrepreneurial mindset, and excellent communication skills set standout candidates apart. These skills and qualities are vital for driving innovation, building scalable solutions from scratch, and collaborating within a fast-paced startup environment.
What are popular job titles related to Founding Machine Learning Engineer jobs in Philadelphia, PA? For Founding Machine Learning Engineer jobs in Philadelphia, PA, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Founding Machine Learning Engineer jobs in Philadelphia, PA look for? The top searched job categories for Founding Machine Learning Engineer jobs in Philadelphia, PA are:
What cities near Philadelphia, PA are hiring for Founding Machine Learning Engineer jobs? Cities near Philadelphia, PA with the most Founding Machine Learning Engineer job openings:
Machine Learning Engineer[C2C/W2 ROLE]

Machine Learning Engineer[C2C/W2 ROLE]

SmartIPlace

Philadelphia, PA โ€ข On-site

Contractor

Posted 27 days ago


Job description

Job Title: Machine Learning Engineer [w2 role]

Location:ย Philadelphia, PA (Onsite โ€“ 4 days/week at 1800 Arch Street)
Alternate location:ย Reston, VA (for strong candidates)
Duration:ย Contract
Eligibility:ย USC, GC


Job Summary

We are seeking aย hands-on Machine Learning Engineerย with 5+ years of experience who can design, build, and deploy scalable machine learning solutions. This role requires strong coding expertise and real-world experience delivering models into production environments. The ideal candidate is not a manager but an individual contributor who thrives in a fast-paced, engineering-focused environment.


Key Responsibilities

  • Model Development:ย Design, build, train, and fine-tune machine learning and deep learning models for real-world use cases
  • Production Deployment:ย Deploy, monitor, and maintain ML models in production environments
  • Data Pipeline Development:ย Build and optimize scalable data pipelines for ingestion, transformation, and processing
  • Performance Optimization:ย Evaluate models using metrics like accuracy, recall, and AUC; optimize for performance and scalability
  • Collaboration:ย Work closely with cross-functional teams including data engineers, software engineers, and business stakeholders

Required Skills & Qualifications

  • 5+ years of experience as a Machine Learning Engineer or similar role
  • Strongย Python programmingย skills with solid software engineering fundamentals
  • Recent and hands-on experience with PySparkย (mandatory)
  • Experience with machine learning frameworks such asย Scikit-learn
  • Strong understanding ofย statistics, probability, and algorithms
  • Experience working withย SQL, data modeling, and large datasets
  • Proven track record ofย deploying ML models into production environments
  • Experience withย AWS services

Preferred Qualifications

  • Experience withย MLOps toolsย such as Docker for model deployment
  • Hands-on experience withย local Large Language Models (LLMs)
  • Familiarity with distributed computing and big data technologies

Interview Process

Round 1 (30 mins โ€“ Virtual)

  • Experience overview
  • Technical discussion
  • Live coding exerciseย (Video ON + full desktop screen sharing required)

Round 2 (60 mins โ€“ In-Person Preferred)

  • Technical deep dive
  • Advanced live coding exercise

Work Environment

  • 4 days onsite preferred (Philadelphia office)
  • Open to relocation candidates
  • Reston, VA location may be considered if needed

Smart-iPlace logo

About Smart-iPlace

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

SMART-iPLACE provides innovative staffing and consulting solutions that help our clients achieve their business objectives. We can understand and support all areas of your IT systems from back-end infrastructure to front-end personal productivity. Our goal is create innovative IT solutions that enable your business to be more agile and competitive.

Industry

It services

Company size

51 - 200 Employees

Headquarters location

Irving, TX, US

Year founded

2021

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