Senior UX Researcher, Handshake Al

Location

San Francisco, CA

Employment Type

Full time

Location Type

On-site

Department

Design

Compensation

$175K – $220K • Offers Equity

For cash compensation, we set standard ranges for all U.S.-based 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 Handshake

Handshake was founded on a simple belief that everyone deserves a path to a great career, regardless of where they went to school or who they know. Today, we power 25 million job seekers, 1 million+ employers, and 1,600 educational institutions.

In 2025, we started Handshake AI and built the fastest-growing AI data business in history. We work directly with frontier AI lab researchers to create evaluations, publish benchmarks, and push the boundary of data. We’ve grown from $0 to ~$1B run rate and pay ~$60M to over 30K individuals every month.

Why join Handshake now:

Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel

Partner hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world’s top educational institutions

Work together with engineers, scientists, operators, and more from Palantir, Meta, Scale AI, and former YC founders

Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue

About Handshake AI

Human data is the core infrastructure to AI advancement. Frontier AI labs currently improve model capabilities with various data-intensive post-training techniques. We believe that data spend for AI training will increase by 3-5x in the next few years and continue for much longer as models take on new domains. Handshake AI supports all of the frontier AI labs, working on their most complex data at the largest scale.

The Role

Handshake Al is rapidly building a new generation of human data products - from expert annotation platforms to Al interviewers and seamless payout infrastructure - all designed to accelerate research and improve model performance. As Al models become more sophisticated, the demand for specialized human input continues to grow - and 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.

We're hiring a strategic, impact-driven UX Researcher to help shape the next frontier of human data. In this role, you'll support the development of platforms used by real human experts to generate data for LLMs at top Al labs.

Lead end-to-end UX research that powers Handshake Al's human data products including expert onboarding, annotation workflows, evaluation tools, and the internal operations systems that power and scale these experiences

Track and measure user sentiment, usability, and efficiency across systems to drive continuous improvement

Extract insights qualitative research and product analytics to inform design and strategy

Plan and run evaluative and generative research throughout the product lifecycle-from early concepts to live tools

Deliver rapid, actionable insights that improve fellow experience, product quality, and operational performance

Recruit participants independently and manage logistics with minimal overhead

Produce clear, timely research deliverables and maintain a centralized repository of insights and recommendations

Deliver actionable insights that directly impact product improvements

Track how research influences key outcomes such as OKRs, engagement, task quality, throughput, and business impact

Build deep partnerships with cross-functional stakeholders to align research with strategic goals

Champion evidence-based, user-centered practices across product, engineering, design, and operations

Prioritize your own research initiatives with design operations and design leadership input

You Have

Strong understanding of Al systems, LLM development workflows, and the role of human-in-the-loop data in model training and evaluation

Demonstrated experience leading UX research for complex, high-impact platforms - ideally across both consumer-facing and internal operations tools

Proven ability to deliver fast, high impact insights that accelerate product development and drive measurable impact

Experience informing content strategy, design, and workflows through research

Experience conducting research that directly improves overall services delivered to external users and operational workflows

Deep understanding of usability and design principles, and how UX research directly improves system clarity and efficiency

Experience using lean research methods - delivering insights in days, not weeks

Ability to synthesize qualitative and quantitative inputs, including product analytics, to tell a compelling user story

Highly collaborative, with a history of effective cross-functional work across product, design, engineering, operations, marketing, and leadership

Track record of influencing product direction by grounding teams in user needs, pain points, and research-backed opportunities

Experience embedding user-centered practices in fast-moving, iterative environments

We Offer

Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supported and thrive at work and in life.

The below benefits are for full-time US employees.

Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company

Financial Wellness: 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching

Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching

Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend

Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development

Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office

Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days

Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses

Explore our mission, values, and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers.

Compensation Range: $175K - $220K