Data Scientist - Kaggle Grandmaster

**Engagement Type:** Independent Contractor **Work Mode:** Fully Remote **Hours:** 30\-40 hours/week or Full\-Time (Flexible) **About The Role** We are partnering with a leading AI research lab to hire a highly skilled **Data Scientist with a Kaggle Grandmaster profile** . In this role, you will transform complex datasets into actionable insights, high\-performing models, and scalable analytical workflows. You will collaborate closely with researchers and engineers to design rigorous experiments, build advanced statistical and machine learning models, and develop data\-driven frameworks that support product and research decisions. **Key Responsibilities** * Analyze large, complex datasets to uncover patterns and generate actionable insights * Build predictive models and ML pipelines across: + Tabular data + Time\-series data + NLP + Multimodal datasets * Design and implement validation strategies, experimental frameworks, and analytical methodologies * Develop automated data workflows, feature pipelines, and reproducible research environments * Conduct exploratory data analysis (EDA), hypothesis testing, and model\-driven investigations * Translate analytical results into clear recommendations for engineering, product, and leadership teams * Collaborate with ML engineers to productionize models and ensure reliable data workflows at scale * Present findings via dashboards, structured reports, and documentation **Required Qualifications** * Kaggle Competitions Grandmaster or comparable achievement (top\-tier rankings, multiple medals, or exceptional competition performance) * 3\-5\+ years of experience in data science or applied analytics * Strong proficiency in Python and data tools (Pandas, NumPy, Polars, scikit\-learn, etc.) * Experience building ML models end\-to\-end (feature engineering, training, evaluation, deployment) * Strong understanding of statistical methods, experiment design, and causal/quasi\-experimental analysis * Familiarity with modern data stacks (SQL, distributed datasets, dashboards, experiment tracking tools) * Excellent communication skills and ability to present analytical insights clearly **Nice to Have** * Contributions across multiple Kaggle tracks (Notebooks, Datasets, Discussions, Code) * Experience in AI labs, fintech, product analytics, or ML\-driven organizations * Knowledge of LLMs, embeddings, and modern ML techniques for text, image, and multimodal data * Experience with big data ecosystems (Spark, Ray, Snowflake, BigQuery, etc.) * Familiarity with Bayesian methods or probabilistic programming frameworks **Why Join** * Work on cutting\-edge AI research workflows * Collaborate with world\-class data scientists and ML engineers * Solve high\-impact, real\-world data science challenges * Experiment with advanced modeling strategies and competition\-grade validation techniques * Flexible engagement options ideal for Kaggle\-level problem solvers