Data Ops Lead

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in New York.

📋 Description

• Your objective is to transform Neon's raw consumer audio streams into the most pristine and dependable training data available, while also developing the commercial and operational framework to deliver it to the world's top AI laboratories.

• As a Data Ops Lead, you will be responsible for the complete process that takes raw recordings from our expanding community of over 500,000 mobile users and produces production-ready datasets for leading laboratories.

• In practice, this entails three primary responsibilities:

• - Structuring and managing data agreements that convert our recordings into revenue.

• - Upholding a quality standard for every dataset that encourages repeat business from buyers.

• - Establishing human transcription, annotation, and other operational tasks, primarily overseas, that enable all of this.

• You will collaborate directly with our CEO on commercial objectives, assist in shaping each agreement, interact with engineering and research teams on the buyer's side at leading labs to convert their precise requirements into actionable dataset plans, and partner with internal engineering and external vendors to ensure the pipeline aligns with our commitments. This role is foundational: the datasets and processes you develop will be the product we offer.

⛳️ Requirements

• Authorization to work in the United States.

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in creating and scaling data pipelines for AI/ML applications, particularly involving audio, speech, or multimodal data.

• Proven experience in structuring and fulfilling data or dataset agreements with external partners: understanding their needs, translating them into clear specifications, and managing the delivery process end to end.

• Experience in building and managing overseas or outsourced teams focused on data tagging, annotation, and quality assurance, with a successful history of maintaining quality and throughput across different time zones.

• A strong sense of accountability for data quality: designing quality assurance processes, establishing acceptance criteria, and identifying issues before they reach customers.

• Sufficient technical proficiency to engage credibly on both sides of a deal. You have an understanding of digital audio fundamentals (sample rates, VAD, multichannel formats), can reason through pipeline construction, and know what constitutes "good" quality, even if you are not coding every line yourself.

• A "Founder's Mentality." You are adept at building from the ground up and making critical decisions with incomplete information.

• Bonus points: Experience working with audio data in various capacities. Direct involvement with training data for TTS, ASR, speaker ID, or full-duplex conversational models. Familiarity with contemporary audio tools (Librosa, FFmpeg, SoX, torchaudio) and cloud data infrastructure (S3, Redshift, BigQuery, or equivalent). An understanding of how high-quality, speaker-separated audio is captured (e.g., through WebRTC-based recording tools). Previous experience in leading a data or infrastructure team, including hiring and mentoring engineers.

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary and performance-based bonuses.

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.

• Flexible working hours and remote work options.

• Professional development opportunities and training programs.

• A vibrant company culture that values innovation and collaboration.