About the role

Aplyr's Quick Take

This role involves creating and curating high-quality text datasets for training large language models at Microsoft. You'll collaborate with a team of engineers and researchers to enhance dataset quality and ensure alignment with ethical standards. It's primarily an individual contributor role focused on data strategy and model training.

Good fit

Ideal candidates are engineers or researchers with experience in data curation and analysis, particularly in AI or machine learning. A collaborative mindset and a passion for ethical AI practices will help you thrive here.

Worth noting

The position is part of a startup-like team within Microsoft, which may offer a more dynamic work environment compared to traditional corporate settings. However, there's a strong expectation to work on-site four days a week if you're within a certain distance from the office.

Overview

We are seeking engineers and researchers to join our Pretraining Text Data team, where we are building the next generation of foundation large language models. If you are passionate about designing and curating high-quality datasets to power frontier AI models, this role is for you.

In this role, you’ll work at the intersection of data and innovation—collaborating with scientists, engineers, and annotators to curate, analyze, and evaluate diverse text datasets critical to model development. You will lead efforts to:

Develop novel data collection strategies

Improve dataset quality and integrity

Understand data-driven model behaviors

Train models to understand the impact of data and data mixes

Align datasets with ethical and societal values

This is a cross-disciplinary, high-impact role ideal for engineers and researchers who want to push the boundaries of what AI can learn from data.

Microsoft Superintelligence Team

Microsoft Superintelligence team’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

This role is part of Microsoft AI's Superintelligence Team. The MAIST is a startup-like team inside Microsoft AI, created to push the boundaries of AI toward Humanist Superintelligence—ultra-capable systems that remain controllable, safety-aligned, and anchored to human values. Our mission is to create AI that amplifies human potential while ensuring humanity remains firmly in control. We aim to deliver breakthroughs that benefit society—advancing science, education, and global well-being.

We’re also fortunate to partner with incredible product teams giving our models the chance to reach billions of users and create immense positive impact. If you’re a brilliant, highly-ambitious and low ego individual, you’ll fit right in—come and join us as we work on our next generation of models!

Starting January 26, 2026, MAI employees are expected to work from a designated Microsoft office at least four days a week if they live within 50 miles (U.S.) or 25 miles (non-U.S., country-specific) of that location. This expectation is subject to local law and may vary by jurisdiction.

Responsibilities

Create high-quality datasets for training and evaluation; run experiments on new datasets (data ablations) to assess their impact and determine the most effective data.
Develop and maintain scalable data pipelines for text data ingestion, preprocessing, filtering, and annotation.
Analyze real-world text datasets to assess quality, diversity, relevance, and identify areas for improvement.
Build lightweight tools and workflows for dataset auditing, visualization, and versioning.
Collaborate with Safety, Ethics, and Governance teams to ensure datasets meet standards for quality, privacy, and responsible AI practices.
Embody our culture and values.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor's Degree in AI, Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, Physics, Engineering, or related technical discipline AND 4+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, Python and common data libraries (Pandas, NumPy, etc.)
- OR equivalent experience.

Preferred Qualifications:

Master's Degree in in AI, Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, Physics, Engineering, or related technical discipline AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, Python and common data libraries (Pandas, NumPy, etc.)
- OR Bachelor's Degree in AI, Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, Physics, Engineering, or related technical discipline AND 12+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, Python and common data libraries (Pandas, NumPy, etc.)
- OR equivalent experience.
2+ years of experience in data analysis or data engineering, including work with large-scale datasets that are unstructured or semi-structured.
Proficiency in statistics and exploratory data analysis methods.
Familiarity with data processing frameworks such as Spark, Ray, or Apache Beam.
Ability to communicate technical findings clearly to research and product teams.

Software Engineering IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $119,800 - $234,700 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $158,400 - $258,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

Software Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $139,900 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.

Skills & Tags

ai data

Aplyr's read

Microsoft is a technology giant shaping global computing, attracting talent interested in innovation and impact across software, cloud, and AI sectors.
Synthesized from recent postings & public sources

What's promising

•Strong commitment to innovation in AI and cloud computing.
•Diverse range of roles from technical to managerial, offering career growth.
•Financially stable with a robust global presence and market influence.

What to watch

•Complex organizational structure can slow decision-making processes.
•High competition for roles may limit entry-level opportunities.
•Potential for work-life balance challenges in high-demand positions.

Why Microsoft

•Pioneer in personal and business computing with a legacy of innovation.
•Extensive global reach with a diverse workforce and inclusive culture.
•Leader in integrating AI into mainstream software and cloud services.

Aplyr’s read is generated by AI from public sources. Was it useful?

About Microsoft

Microsoft

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MSFT$399.76+2.31%

Microsoft is a global technology company that develops, licenses, and supports a wide range of software products, services, and devices. Known for its Windows operating system and Office productivity suite, Microsoft has a significant impact on personal and business computing worldwide.