Engineering Manager, Applied AI

San Francisco FullTime

Posted 2mo ago

Job Location

San Francisco

Remote Work Policy

On-site

Employment Type

FullTime

Categories

Applied AI Engineer

About the job

Mercor is seeking Engineering Managers to lead teams within its Applied AI organization. Applied AI focuses on building systems that enhance model quality, including evaluation infrastructure, annotation products, and multimodal capabilities. In this role, you will lead a team of engineers, collaborate with product and research departments, and contribute to defining Mercor's position at the forefront of AI. You will also forge partnerships with leading AI labs and directly influence the improvement of frontier models through data, evaluation, and systems. This position demands a high degree of ownership and the ability to operate at a strategic level, setting direction, driving results, and remaining technically engaged while leading.

Responsibilities

  • Manage and grow a team of 6-10 engineers.
  • Coach and develop high-potential engineers.
  • Establish strong ownership, culture, and execution standards.
  • Define hiring processes, engineering practices, and scale a high-performing team.
  • Drive insights and methodology behind evaluation systems for benchmarking and improving model performance.
  • Lead development while improving data quality, operational efficiency, system stability, and scalability.
  • Scale products that generate high-quality training data and enhance human-in-the-loop workflows.
  • Lead system design for complex AI systems.
  • Guide engineers through ambiguous problems and stay close to technical work.
  • Translate high-level AI goals into clear engineering roadmaps and execution plans.
  • Partner with product, research, operations, and external AI labs.
  • Work across systems, data insights, and custom partnerships to drive model quality.
  • Introduce lightweight processes as the organization scales.
  • Hire and develop strong engineering talent.
  • Help define engineering management practices at Mercor.

Requirements

  • 6-10 years of engineering experience.
  • 2-3+ years of experience managing teams.
  • Strong background in building scalable systems.
  • Ability to lead in ambiguous environments with sound technical judgment.
  • Proven ability to coach engineers and drive execution.
  • Strong ownership mindset with pragmatic decision-making.

Benefits

  • Bi-annual performance bonus structure.
  • Generous equity grant vested over 4 years.
  • Up to $15k Relocation bonus.
  • $10K housing bonus (if you live within 0.5 miles of our office).
  • $1.5K monthly stipend for meals.
  • Free Equinox membership.
  • $200 monthly laundry reimbursement.
  • $200 monthly personal wellness reimbursement.
  • Health, Dental, Vision insurance.

About Mercor

Get new AI jobs in your inbox

A weekly digest of the newest AI engineering roles.

© 2026 AI Job Board. All rights reserved.