Senior AI/ML Data Scientist

About Sovrn

Every interesting company solves important problems for other people.  Sovrn is a Software and Data business that helps Open Web businesses be and remain independent.  We help them understand their business better, operate more efficiently, and make & keep more money.

• We believe in the freedom and free-flow of information.
• We believe the Open Web is the largest source of this information.
• We believe in helping Open Web businesses be and remain Independent.

Through Software products and Data solutions we help our customers:

• Understand their business better, so they can make better decisions
• Operate their business more efficiently, so they can invest in what matters most
• Make (and Keep) more money, so they control their own destiny

About the Role

The Senior AI/ML Data Scientist at Sovrn is a strategic technical leader who drives high-impact data initiatives across the organization. This role requires a unique blend of strategic vision ("the art of the possible") and tactical execution ("think and execute tactically"). You will solve ambiguous problems to deliver measurable business value and influence the future of data science in AdTech. You will guide architecture, experimentation, and product design while ensuring scientific and technical rigor. This position requires technical excellence, business acumen, and leadership.

What you’ll be doing:

• Operate at the frontier of applied AI as a hands-on practitioner — personally exploring, prototyping, evaluating, and deploying cutting-edge Agentic AI technologies to bring new, grounded insight into product, modeling, and optimization decisions. 
• Design, implement, and deploy advanced predictive models, algorithms, and experiments that drive core business outcomes, specifically optimizing ad performance, user engagement, and monetization strategies.
• Analyze large-scale datasets to identify patterns, trends, and optimization opportunities, while maintaining and improving data pipelines and experimentation frameworks to support ongoing research.
• Define and evangelize best practices in modeling, testing, measurement, and data governance, ensuring scientific rigor while balancing practical business constraints and timelines.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to identify high-leverage AI/ML opportunities, translate them into actionable roadmaps, and deliver measurable outcomes.
• Mentor other data scientists through code review, experiment design, and technical feedback and model what it looks like to stay current with fast-moving AI research in a production-focused environment. 
• Translate complex data problems into strategic decisions through compelling storytelling and clear communication of findings and recommendations to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

A successful candidate will have:

• Proven ability to deploy autonomous agents to production including optimizing inference performance, managing latency/cost tradeoffs, and ensuring robust model evaluation at each stage.
• Demonstrates prompt engineering discipline by systematically evaluating prompts across model families using quantitative evaluation.
• Active use of AI tools in daily technical work — integrates coding assistants, orchestration frameworks, and search-augmented workflows in ways that accelerate prototyping and reduce iteration cycles.
• Experience in data science and applied machine learning, with a strong record of delivering business impact.
• Deep technical proficiency across classical ML (supervised/unsupervised), reinforcement learning, and deep learning, with a strong foundation in statistical modeling, A/B testing, and causal inference.
• Proficiency with Python, SQL, cloud-based data ecosystems, modern AI/ML frameworks (e.g., Pandas, Scikit-Learn, PyTorch/TensorFlow, LangChain, Hugging Face, PydanticAI), experience with large-scale datasets and distributed computing frameworks (e.g., Spark, PySpark), and Databricks running on AWS Cloud.
• Strong understanding of ad tech ecosystems (e.g., RTB, DSP/SSP workflows, auctions, and yield optimization) is a big plus.
• Demonstrated ability to influence across technical and non-technical audiences, lead cross-functional initiatives, and work in a collaborative, agile environment (Scrum and Kanban).
• A strategic mindset with strong product intuition and experience working at scale.

Location: This position is based in our Boulder, Colorado office. For exceptional candidates we would consider remote locations. Applicants need to be able to commute/travel to our Boulder location.

We understand that no candidate is perfectly qualified for any job. Experience comes in different forms; many skills are transferable; and passion goes a long way. Even more important than your resume is a clear demonstration of accountability and the ability to thrive in a fluid and collaborative environment. We expect you to learn new things in this role and encourage you to apply if your experience is close to what we're looking for.

Sovrn Core Values: Candid, Customer Empathy, Learning, Scrappy, Second Order Thinking

Compensation and Benefits

The base salary for this position in Boulder, Colorado is $165,000 to $195,000 annually. In addition to salary, the total compensation package includes bonus, equity, and benefits. Actual earnings may vary depending on the candidate's direct experience, skills, knowledge, and location.

Sovrn offers a full slate of benefits from competitive salaries, stock options, medical, dental, and vision coverage, short and long-term disability, life insurance, 11 paid holidays, flexible vacation, commuter benefits, a 401(k) plan and match, and a paid parental leave program.

Job Posting

Applications will be accepted until May 30, 2026.

Equal Opportunity Employer 

Sovrn is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants regardless of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, parental or pregnancy status, marriage and civil partnership, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Reasonable accommodations will be made to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act and will be provided as requested by candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process. 

Recruitment Agencies

Sovrn does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias or Sovrn employees. Sovrn is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.