Remote opportunity at
Tonic.aiForward Deployed Engineer, Data De-Identification
Tonic.ai is seeking a remote Forward Deployed Engineer to specialize in Data De-Identification for their newest business line. Operating as an independent third party between enterprises…
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About This Role
Tonic.ai is seeking a remote Forward Deployed Engineer to specialize in Data De-Identification for their newest business line. Operating as an independent third party between enterprises and AI labs, Tonic.ai sanitizes company operating data such as emails, chat logs, documents, and code by replacing real identities with consistent synthetic alternatives while maintaining original file formats and readability. In this role, you will act as one of the founding engineers for…
Job Description
Tonic.ai is seeking a remote Forward Deployed Engineer to specialize in Data De-Identification for their newest business line. Operating as an independent third party between enterprises and AI labs, Tonic.ai sanitizes company operating data such as emails, chat logs, documents, and code by replacing real identities with consistent synthetic alternatives while maintaining original file formats and readability. In this role, you will act as one of the founding engineers for this business area, partnering closely with technical founders, platform engineers, data scientists, and the internal annotation team to process client data corpora and deliver ready-to-use datasets on rapid timelines.
This position suits a self-directed engineer experienced in data or backend engineering who thrives on short delivery windows ranging from days to weeks. You will take ownership of the complete client de-identification lifecycle—from ingesting messy, half-documented client exports and diagnosing pipeline errors to verifying output accuracy, running reconciliation checks, and contributing to technical client reports. Success in this role requires leveraging AI-native workflows, writing code that integrates within existing platform guardrails, and turning custom one-off fixes into reusable documentation, runbooks, and product enhancements. Over time, you will transition from working alongside team members on live engagements to independently managing projects from scoping to delivery while helping shape the growth of the business function.
Responsibilities
- Manage client de-identification projects from initial raw data review to final client acceptance
- Process client data corpora through the de-identification pipeline and verify output accuracy
- Identify and diagnose issues such as missed entities, incorrect replacements, split or merged identities, and file rebuilding failures
- Fix errors or articulate them clearly to the responsible engineer, rerun pipelines, and confirm fixes with the annotation team
- Develop and modify ingestion and transformation steps for various raw export formats including mailboxes, chat archives, document dumps, and databases
- Write merged code within existing platform guardrails, incorporating custom handling for client-specific needs
- Perform reconciliation checks to ensure file counts and content match from ingestion through delivery
- Contribute technical sections to client reports explaining sensitivity treatments, file type handling, and known limitations
- Guide clients through completed datasets and procedures alongside founders initially and independently over time
- Convert one-off fixes into reusable documentation, runbooks, and product improvements
Requirements
- Several years of hands-on experience in backend engineering, data engineering, or a forward-deployed solutions role shipping production customer systems
- Strong proficiency in Python, SQL, and other backend programming languages
- Ability to read and debug code written by others
- Experience building repeatable pipelines for processing large volumes of structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data
- Familiarity with data flow mechanics and the ability to detect incorrect outputs
- AI-native workflow habits where AI tools and agents are central, reliable with oversight, and verified before use
- Self-directed execution capability to make sound technical decisions independently on client engagements
- Clear communication skills tailored for audiences ranging from client engineers to senior executives
- Demonstrated track record of delivering complex projects on short timelines measured in days and weeks
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in a technical field such as computer science, engineering, math, statistics, physics, bioinformatics, or a related discipline
- Experience with machine learning pipelines, model inference, or PyTorch
- Prior background building or maintaining ETL, data masking, de-identification, or synthetic data tooling
- Interest in working closely with frontier AI labs and the training-data ecosystem
- Previous experience working at an early-stage company or contributing to a new product line
Core Skills
Benefits
- Competitive compensation
- Equity
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers are based only on the employer’s listing; where it doesn’t say, neither do we.
Is this position remote?
Yes, the posting specifies that the role is remote and full-time.
What are the core technical requirements for the role?
Candidates must have several years of experience in backend or data engineering, strong skills in Python, SQL, and other backend languages, and experience building repeatable pipelines for large volumes of structured and unstructured data.
What is the salary for this position?
The salary is not stated in the posting, though competitive compensation and equity are offered.
What will I be doing in my first month on the job?
During your first month, you will learn the platform and delivery process while running part of a live client engagement alongside the team.
Sample Interview Questions
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