Lead, ML Data Operations

Suno Suno · Multimodal · San Francisco, CA · Machine Learning

Lead ML Data Operations role focused on building and managing the function responsible for sourcing and developing data for AI models. This involves managing external vendors, partnering with researchers on data requirements, and identifying opportunities for in-product data collection. The role requires building teams, systems, and processes from scratch.

What you'd actually do

  1. Source, evaluate, and manage relationships with external data labeling vendors, from initial scoping through contracts, quality oversight, and ongoing performance
  2. Partner with ML researchers to understand data requirements and develop concrete plans to meet them
  3. Identify opportunities to improve how Suno collects data with product and engineering
  4. Build and lead the team, systems, and processes that make data sourcing a reliable, repeatable capability
  5. Contribute to a data-driven model development culture as part of a close-knit team of researchers, engineers, and product builders

Skills

Required

  • 6–8+ years of experience in ML data operations, training data, or data labeling programs with direct experience managing external labeling vendors, building internal labeling systems, or both
  • Demonstrated leadership at a director or equivalent level, with a track record of building teams or functions that didn't previously exist
  • Comfort and excitement with operating with a high degree of autonomy where the path isn't fully defined
  • Strong cross-functional instincts across Research, Product, and Engineering

Nice to have

  • Background at a foundational model company or data labeling organization
  • Experience influencing how product features are designed with training data collection in mind
  • Familiarity with music, audio, or creative AI

What the JD emphasized

  • building teams or functions that didn't previously exist
  • operating with a high degree of autonomy where the path isn't fully defined

Other signals

  • ML data operations
  • training data
  • data labeling
  • external data labeling vendors
  • build and lead a new function
  • build this function from the ground up