Purpose
We are seeking a highly experienced Audio professional consultant to serve as a consultant on AI training data projects for leading AI model builders and enterprises. Your focus will be to define success criteria, review outputs, and provide targeted guidance to improve quality and speed — directly contributing to the successful delivery of domain-specific annotated datasets that meet the highest technical standards. You will be engaged on specific projects with clearly defined deliverables, milestones, and end dates.
Components
Technical Standard Setting, Quality Control, and Process Improvement
Define domain-specific quality success metrics (e.g., 48 kHz sample rate, 24-bit depth, mono per talent, uncompressed WAV/Linear PCM).
Develop project-specific SOPs, QA rubrics, and reference materials for the specific purpose of meeting client technical standards.
Review project outputs (recordings, annotations) against technical standards, flagging and correcting defects before client delivery.
Perform structured QA passes on daily/weekly drops; flag, track, and resolve defects quickly to hit delivery deadlines.
Return files to contractors with precise remediation notes.
Provide advisory input on recording pipelines, mic requirements, and room treatment to meet quality benchmarks.
Handle spec changes and edge-case scenarios — e.g., evaluation of new client codec/format requests — drafting acceptance criteria or workarounds.
Curate example libraries of “gold standard” clips to calibrate the team and assess comparability to agreed sample references.
Talent Vetting & Output Improvement
Participate in vetting and assessing technical contractor talent for specific projects.
Review sample work from contractors and provide precise, actionable written feedback to improve outputs.
Create targeted training or calibration resources — e.g., mic technique, gain staging, room treatment, and noise mitigation.
Project Delivery Support
Advise on technical scoping and requirements during project setup.
Provide expert guidance for edge cases, technical exceptions, and specification changes.
Contribute to post-project reviews to capture lessons learned and improve future standards.
Identify and summarize client model observations and insights.
Build dashboards or trackers with defect categories and recurrence to surface production insights that improve project outcomes.
Conduct post-mortems, analyze defect trends, and propose process tweaks or training refreshers.
Target Profile
Deep technical expertise and 3+ years professional experience in audio engineering, dialog/voice recording, or post-production QA.
Mastery of digital audio standards (48 kHz, 24-bit, mono, uncompressed WAV/Linear PCM).
Proven ability to set, enforce, and maintain high technical standards in audio production and QA.
Strong communication skills for delivering clear technical guidance.
Experience producing technical documentation, quality rubrics, or training resources.
Ability to work within fixed project timelines and scope.
Strong attention to detail, documentation discipline, and commitment to accuracy and consistency.
Fluency in spoken and written English, with clear and concise writing skills.
Example Data Annotation - Potential Scope
Field of Study
Agent Task Specialty
Audio Engineering
Audio cleaning, restoration, denoising, EQ matching
Digital Signal Processing (DSP)
Signal filtering, time/frequency domain analysis
Music Technology
Audio synthesis, MIDI generation, instrument simulation
Speech Processing
Speech-to-text, voice separation, speech enhancement
Psychoacoustics
Perceptual tuning, masking modeling, loudness normalization
Acoustics
Room response modeling, impulse response simulation
Machine Learning for Audio
Sound event classification, speaker diarization, pitch detection
Sound Design
Foley effect generation, cinematic audio layering
Mixing and Mastering
Level balancing, compression/limiting simulation, mastering chain
Audio UX / Accessibility
Voice interface optimization, assistive audio task simulation
We offer a pay range of $25-to- $100 per hour, with the exact rate determined after evaluating your experience, expertise, and geographic location. Final offer amounts may vary from the pay range listed above. As a contractor you’ll supply a secure computer and high‑speed internet; company‑sponsored benefits such as health insurance and PTO do not apply.
Job title: Audio Engineering Expert (SME)Employment type: ContractWorkplace type: RemoteSeniority level: Senior Level