Your impact

Start your career at the intersection of AI strategy and operations.

Handshake is expanding into cuttingedge AI research and development. Were building a worldclass network of expert Fellows including PhDs researchers and specialists who drive forward the next generation of AI through domainspecific applications model evaluations and specialized research. Our work is deeply rooted in Human Data highquality humanlabeled datasets that power the development and evaluation of frontier models. We partner with the worlds leading AI labs on their most ambitious research helping shape the future of artificial intelligence.

Were looking for several highly motivated Strategic Projects Associates to join our team and support highimpact initiatives across product operations and customer success. This is a unique opportunity for a recent graduate to dive into strategic work gain handson experience across teams and grow in a fastpaced missiondriven environment.

This will be at our San Francisco location and this team is traditionally in the office five days a week.

Your role

• Lead execution of highvisibility highimpact customer data collection pipelines ensuring steady progress and measurable outcomes.
• Translate customer needs into wellstructured data sets that enhance model performance and align with strategic objectives.
• Develop and optimize infrastructure for data pipelines to ensure quality scalability and operational efficiency.
• Support and manage globally distributed teams of expert LLM contributors through training coaching and handson guidance.
• Design and implement analytics to inform decisionmaking and improve pipeline and team performance.
• Collaborate crossfunctionally with Engineering Product Operations and GotoMarket teams to solve complex challenges that accelerate advancements in leading LLMs.

Your experience

• A recent graduate (or graduating soon) with a strong academic record.
• Youve completed internships in tech consulting banking financial services or startups.
• A strategic thinker with strong analytical and organizational skills.
• A selfstarter who thrives in fastmoving environments and enjoys building from the ground up.
• An excellent communicator who can work effectively across teams and with external partners.
• Proficient in productivity tools such as Google Sheets or Excel Google Docs and Google Drive for organizing and sharing information.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills across channels such as email Slack and virtual meetings.

Bonus: You majored in a STEM field (a degree in engineering or computer science is ideal) or have exposure to technical concepts (e.g. data software or AI).

Why Youll Love This Role

• Youll get to work on meaningful AI projects that impact realworld applications.
• Youll be part of a small dynamic team where your ideas and work matter from day one.
• Youll gain exposure to multiple business functions and grow into a highimpact operator.
• Youll work directly with leaders in AI tech and data strategy.

Traits We Value

• Curiosity about AI and emerging technologies (maybe youre already a ChatGPT power user!)
• High agency and a bias toward action you take ownership and move things forward
• Ability to learn complex concepts quickly and think critically under pressure
• A thoughtful datadriven decision maker whos comfortable navigating ambiguity

Compensation range

$100000$115000

For cash compensation we set standard ranges for all roles based on function level and geographic location benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. In order to be compliant with local legislation as well as to provide greater transparency to candidates we share salary ranges on all job postings regardless of desired hiring location. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including geographic location as well as candidate experience and expertise and may vary from the amounts listed above.

About us

Handshake is building the future of human data for AI.

We partner directly with top AI labs to power large language model (LLM) training and evaluation with highquality expertgenerated data. As AI models become more sophisticated the demand for specialized human input continues to growand Handshake is uniquely positioned to meet it. We power career platforms at 92% of the top U.S. universities giving us direct access to verified expert talent across a wide range of domains.

Our AI team is rapidly building a new generation of human data productsfrom expert annotation platforms to AI interviewers and seamless payout infrastructureall designed to accelerate research and improve model performance.

Weve assembled a worldclass team from YC Notion Scale Coinbase Palantir and more and were working directly with many of the worlds leading AI research labs. This is a unique opportunity to join a fastgrowing team shaping the future of AI through better data better tools and better systemsfor experts by experts.

What we offer

At Handshake well give you the tools to feel healthy happy and secure.

Benefits below apply to US employees in fulltime positions.

• Equity and ownership in a fastgrowing company.
• 16 Weeks of paid parental leave for birth giving parents & 10 weeks of paid parental leave for nonbirth giving parents.
• Comprehensive medical dental and vision policies including LGTBQ Coverage. We also provide resources for Mental Health Assistance Employee Assistance Programs and counseling support.
• Generous learning & development opportunities and an annual $2000 stipend for you to grow your skills and career.
• Financial coaching through Origin to help you through your financial journey.
• Monthly internet stipend and a brand new MacBook to allow you to do your best work.
• Monthly commuter stipend for you to expense your travel to the office (for officebased employees).
• Free lunch provided 5x a week.
• Free gym access in San Francisco office building.
• Referral bonus to reward you when you bring great talent to Handshake.
• Team outings throughout the year to stay connected to each other.

• 401k Match: Handshake offers a dollarfordollar match on 1% of deferred salary up to a maximum of $1200 per year.
• All fulltime USbased Handshakers are eligible for our flexible time off policy to get out and see the world. In addition we offer 13 standardized holidays and 2 additional days of flexible holiday time off. Lastly we have a Winter #ShakeBreak a oneweek period of Collective Time Off.
• Handshake offers $500 home office stipend for you to spend during your first 3 months to create a productive and comfortable workspace at home.
• Family support: Parental leave coaching and support provided by Parentaly. We partner with Maven Clinic to provide a lifetime coverage up to $15K for expenses related to fertility and family forming!
• Lifestyle Savings Account: We offer you an annual stipend of $500 to use for purchases such as fitness classes gym memberships workfromhome setup and more.

Looking for more Explore our mission values and comprehensive US benefits at is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or reasonable accommodation please let your recruiter know during initial communications.