Freelance Research Software Engineer Jobs in California

Job Title: Research Software Engineer - Data Fabric & OntologyLocation

STIC (Software Technology Innovation Center), Sunnyvale, CA, USA

About STIC & the Foundations Lab

STIC is SLB's Silicon Valley applied research center - the company's bleeding-edge evangelists. We operate deliberately outside the critical path of engineering delivery, which gives us the freedom to pursue the high-risk, high-reward research that teams under delivery pressure cannot. Our mandate is to identify frontier digital technology before it goes mainstream, translate it into business advantage for SLB, and embed it through partnership and knowledge transfer.

The Foundations Lab owns STIC's Data Fabric & Ontology theme - how SLB architects, harmonizes, and reasons over data at industrial scale. This is not maintenance engineering. We are building toward a multi-year arc: from AI-driven semantic harmonization of messy legacy data today, to living knowledge graphs that mirror business logic and physical assets, to self-evolving data architectures that rewrite their own schemas as new use cases emerge.

The Role

We're hiring a Research Software Engineer to help lead that arc. You'll design and build proof-of-concept systems that de-risk transformative ideas in data fabric, ontology engineering, knowledge graphs, and agentic data management - and translate them into a clear point of view on what SLB should adopt next.

This is a hands-on, high-visibility role. You'll own solutions from inception to delivery, work directly with Big Tech and the Silicon Valley startup ecosystem, and shape the technical direction of one of STIC's six strategic themes. Reporting to the Foundations Lab manager, you'll be expected to lead through the work - building the systems, forming the opinion, and bringing others along.

We're looking for a self-starter who thrives in ambiguity, treats experimentation as the default, and wants to define what industrial data platforms look like in 2030 rather than iterate on what they look like today.

What You'll Work On

• Semantic harmonization & AI-ready data - AI-driven \"semantic mappers\" that harmonize fragmented legacy data into standard schemas; ontologies, knowledge graphs, and data virtualization for industrial-scale operations.
• Ontology engineering & knowledge graphs - AI-assisted and AI-constructed ontologies, GraphRAG and multi-hop reasoning, and knowledge graphs as living digital twins of business logic linked to physical assets.
• Data agents & agentic data management - Autonomous agents for data discovery, integration, quality, and governance; the execution layer of a modern data fabric.
• Knowledge runtime & the truth layer - Systems that manage retrieval, verification, reasoning, access control, and audit - including shared human-AI knowledge systems and in-context capture of tacit expertise.
• Platform & system design - Scalable, fault-tolerant, cloud-native architectures (Kubernetes, GCP/Azure/AWS) and modern data infrastructure (lakehouse, open table formats, streaming) - in service of the research above.

Responsibilities

• Identify - Track the frontier of data fabric, ontology, and knowledge infrastructure; spot genuinely groundbreaking technology before it becomes mainstream.
• Translate - Build proof-of-concept systems that de-risk ideas, then form a clear, evidence-based opinion on what SLB should adopt, watch, or ignore.
• Embed - Partner with other STIC labs, SLB business units, and the external ecosystem to transfer knowledge and catalyze adoption of validated technology.
• Shape technical direction for the Data Fabric & Ontology theme - generating ideas, defining new research directions, and owning projects end to end.
• Collaborate with AI engineers and researchers to integrate ML and agentic capabilities into the broader data landscape.
• Establish thought leadership - disseminating knowledge through talks, tutorials, and internal briefings across SLB.
• Provide technical mentorship and raise the bar for engineering craft across the lab.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in Computer Science, Data/Information Science, or a related field - or equivalent demonstrated depth.
• 8+ years building production-grade data, distributed, or ML systems, with deep expertise in several of: data platforms and pipelines, knowledge graphs / graph databases, semantic technologies and ontologies, LLM/RAG and agentic systems, or cloud-native distributed systems.
• A track record of taking ambiguous, open-ended problems from concept to working system.
• Strong written and verbal communication - you can turn a technical result into a decision-useful point of view.

Strongly preferred

• Hands-on experience with ontology engineering, knowledge graphs, GraphRAG, or semantic layers.
• Experience with agentic systems, LLM orchestration, or AI memory / knowledge-runtime architectures.
• Familiarity with modern data infrastructure (lakehouse, open table formats such as Iceberg/Delta, streaming with Kafka/Spark).
• Exposure to industrial, energy, or other complex real-world data domains.

What sets a candidate apart

• Evidence of frontier awareness - you already have opinions on grounding AI reasoning in business context, AI-constructed ontologies, or where AI knowledge-management is heading.
• A builder's instinct paired with a researcher's rigor - you prototype fast but reason carefully about what the result actually proves.

All Applicants For U.S. Roles Must Carefully Read All the Supplemental U.S. Specific Information Listed Below

ALL APPLICANTS FOR U.S. ROLES MUST CAREFULLY READ ALL THE SUPPLEMENTAL U.S. SPECIFIC INFORMATION LISTED BELOW.

SLB is committed to a culture where everyone feels like they belong. To learn more about our diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments, please visit our Diversity & Inclusion | SLB (slb.com) page for more information.

When certifying your application, you are also certifying on reading and understanding all of the below supplemental information. For purposes of the application and the below information, Company shall be defined to mean SLB. Please note that the below supplemental information and the employment application are NOT a contract.

1. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY & VETERANS

   Company policy is to provide every individual a fair and equal opportunity to seek employment and advancement at the Company without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, citizenship, genetic information, veteran or military status, disability, creed, ancestry, pregnancy (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions), marital status or any factors protected by federal, state, or local laws. We are an \"Equal Opportunity Employer\". For more information please, refer to the latest version of \"Know Your Rights\" poster and the \"Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Poster\" located here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/posters. The Company is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor - priority referral Protected Veterans requested.

2. REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS

   The Company will endeavor to make a reasonable accommodation / modification to the known physical or mental limitations of a qualified applicant with a disability to assist in the hiring process, unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local law. If you believe you require such assistance to complete the application or to participate in the interview process, please contact accommodationhotline@slb.com to request assistance. Please note that only those inquiries concerning a request for reasonable accommodation will be responded to.

3. AUTHORIZATION FOR EMPLOYMENT

   Pursuant to the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, all applicants who are offered and accept employment must produce documents establishing their identity and authorization for employment in the United States. These documents must be produced no later than seventy-two (72) hours after employment commences. In addition, all applicants who are offered and accept employment will be required to verify their employment authorization under oath by signing a USCIS Form I-9. SLB is an E-Verify employer.

4. APPLICATION CERTIFICATION

   When applying to a job please read the application carefully before certifying that all of the answers you have given are true, accurate and complete. Ensure that you have read and fully understand the questions asked in the application. Unless noted otherwise, by certifying the application, you are also agreeing to and/or authorizing the following:

   • You understand that any omission and/or misrepresentation of any fact from or on the application or during any interview will result in immediate rejection of the application, or if hired, will be cause for immediate dismissal.
   • You certify that you have read and understand all the supplemental information listed on the job description page for the job that you are applying for.
   • You authorize the Company to contact the education institutions that you have attended and for the Company to make any further investigations deemed necessary in connection with your application for employment.
   • You authorize the Company to inquire about, investigate and obtain copies of any records which relate to you from your former employers and educational institutions.
   • You release the Company and all affiliated persons and entities, as well as any person or institution that provides the Company with any lawful information about you, from any and all liability whatsoever resulting from any such lawful inquiry, investigation, or communication.
   • You agree that if hired, you will review and become familiar with all the rules and regulations of the Company.
   • You understand and agree that nothing in the application or supplement shall constitute an offer, a contract, or a guarantee of employment for a specific period of time.
   • If hired, you understand that your employment may be terminated with or without cause and with or without notice at any time, at the will of the Company or yourself, for any or no reason.
   • If hired, you understand that no supervisor or manager has authority to make an agreement to the contrary changing employment at-will.
   • If hired, you understand that the Company and all plan administrators shall have the maximum discretion permitted by law to administer, interpret, modify, discontinue, enhance, or otherwise change all policies, procedures, benefits or other terms and conditions of employment.
   • You understand that any application that is filled out will be in effect for 90 days from the date you certified it and, if employment is not offered within the 90-day period, you understand that you must reapply to be considered for future employment.
   • You understand that your application for employment in no way obligates the Company to employ you.

5. STATE INFORMATION

   Please read below any applicable State Information. By certifying the application, you are also certifying that you have read and understood any applicable State Information that is listed below.

   • ARIZONA APPLICANTS ONLY: To the extent required by applicable law, the Company maintains a smoke-free workplace.
   • CALIFORNIA APPLICANTS ONLY: I understand the Company may obtain, without using the services of a third party investigative consumer reporting agency, public records pertaining to my character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living during its evaluation of my application for employment and, if employed, during my employment. By checking the following box, I waive my right to receive copies of public records obtained by the Company.
   • MASSACHUSETTS APPLICANTS ONLY: Note that it is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
   • MARYLAND APPLICANTS ONLY: Under Maryland law, an employer may not require or demand, as a condition of employment, prospective employment, or continued employment, that an individual submit to or take a lie detector test. An employer who violates this law is guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a fine not exceeding $100.
   • NEBRASKA APPLICANTS ONLY: By certifying the application you, hereby give consent to any and all prior employers of yours to provide information with regard to your employment with prior employers to SLB.