Jobs · Full-time

ML Inference Expert - Remote Async Contract Worldwide — Columbus

LocationColumbus
CompanyToptal
Sourceremoteok
Posted2026-11-05 14:58:56

Traveler-Friendly Insight

Fully async, location-independent contract work — this is about as nomad-friendly as it gets. Tasks are discrete, self-contained units of ~60–75 minutes each, with no fixed hours, no timezone requirements mentioned, and no synchronous meetings implied. You submit when you're ready and receive written reviewer feedback asynchronously.

Visa considerations: Because this is task-based contract work (not employment), it typically falls under freelance/self-employment income. This means it pairs naturally with:

  • Digital nomad visas (Portugal, Spain, Costa Rica, Georgia, Thailand LTR) — all require proof of remote income, which per-task earnings can satisfy if volume is sufficient.
  • Tourist visas for shorter stays — common in Thailand, Indonesia (Bali), or Mexico where nomads work legally as self-employed contractors.

Income considerations: No rate is disclosed, so it's hard to benchmark against cost of living. However, if per-task rates are competitive for ML experts (~$100–$300/task as seen in similar AI data-labeling platforms), completing several tasks per week could cover living costs in Medellín (~$1,200/mo) or Chiang Mai (~$1,000/mo) easily, while Lisbon (~$2,500/mo) would require a higher task volume. Clarify the per-task rate before committing.

No equipment stipend or coworking budget is mentioned. You'll need your own GPU-capable setup or cloud credits for realistic task testing.

Overview

We are building a benchmark that tests how well AI agents handle real expert work in a terminal. We are hiring ML inference and serving experts to turn real, paid tasks from their jobs into expert-level Terminal-Bench challenges. Each task includes the environment, a working solution, and an automated check that proves the result is correct.

***THIS IS A TASK BASED COMPENSATION MODEL. PLEASE CHECK THE APPLICATION QUESTIONS FOR MORE DETAILS.***

Responsibilities

  • Design expert-level Terminal-Bench tasks that turn real, paid ML inference work from your own experience into challenges an AI agent must solve end to end.
  • Define the files, systems and environments each task runs on, such as model serving with streaming, so the challenge is realistic, reproducible and command-line solvable.
  • Write a working reference solution for every task and verify it runs end to end, sized for about 60 to 75 minutes of expert effort.
  • Build automated checks that objectively prove a result is correct, including cases where ML outputs go wrong silently, such as numerical drift or metric bugs.
  • Package tasks with Docker and Git so they are reproducible, and document the systems, tools, data and rules involved so reviewers can validate difficulty.
  • Iterate on tasks based on reviewer feedback and agent test runs, adjusting difficulty and fixing ambiguities so each task stays expert-level, fair and objectively gradable.

Skills / Experience Required

  • 3+ years doing ML inference or serving work hands-on (not only studying, selling or managing it), or a PhD plus active research in the subfield.
  • Did this work in the last 3 years and can name the systems, tools, data and rules used.
  • Trained, served or evaluated models at real scale (multi-GPU or production serving), not only notebooks or API calls.
  • Hands-on with PyTorch or JAX internals and serving stacks such as vLLM, SGLang or TensorRT-LLM.
  • Can explain how ML results go wrong without errors (numerical drift, metric bugs) and how to catch them.
  • Technical fluency in Python and the command line, and with files, CSV/JSON, APIs or databases.
  • Availability to start by early November 2026 and complete tasks of about 60 to 75 minutes each.

Nice-to-Have

  • AI lab or LLM infrastructure experience.
  • Contributions to PyTorch, vLLM or SGLang.
  • GPU profiling experience.
  • Docker and Git proficiency.
  • Experience writing automated tests.

Process

  • Task vetting instead of an interview: complete a vetting task so the client can assess your task design.
  • Paid per task; each task takes about 60 to 75 minutes.
  • Work is delivered task by task, with reviewer feedback on submissions.
  • Expected start in early November 2026.

Please mention the word ASTONISHED and tag RMTM4LjE5Ny4yMy4yNTU= when applying to show you read the job post completely (#RMTM4LjE5Ny4yMy4yNTU=). This is a beta feature to avoid spam applicants. Companies can search these words to find applicants that read this and see they're human.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a full-time job or freelance contract work?
This is a task-based compensation model — you are paid per completed task, not on a salary. Each task takes approximately 60–75 minutes, and there is no commitment to a fixed number of tasks.
Can I work on this from any country in the world?
Yes, the role is listed as open to anyone worldwide with no location restrictions mentioned. The work is fully asynchronous with no timezone requirements stated.
How much does each task pay?
The per-task rate is not disclosed in the job posting. The listing directs applicants to check the application questions for full compensation details — review those before applying.
What is the application process like?
Instead of a traditional interview, you complete a vetting task so the client can assess your task design quality. If accepted, work begins with the expected start date of early November 2026.
What technical background is required to qualify?
You need 3+ years of hands-on ML inference or serving experience (or a relevant PhD), recent experience with production-scale GPU serving, and proficiency with frameworks like PyTorch, JAX, vLLM, SGLang, or TensorRT-LLM.
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