About Pivotal

We are a team of ecologists and technologists who believe good business must be good for nature.

Economies and societies around the world need our planet’s diverse plant and animal life to create the products and services we take for granted. Protecting and restoring nature is vital to the future of human life as we know it.

For the first time, investment into nature and biodiversity is being prioritised. Financing is flowing to projects and start-ups that are creating practical, viable solutions. Governments, companies, and individuals around the world now need affordable, scalable ways to link biodiversity commitments and actions to real, evidenced outcomes. That’s where we come in.

Our mission is to provide the data people and companies need to invest in positive outcomes for nature. We capture biodiversity data on the ground using a range of technologies. All the data we collect is organised and analysed first with machine learning, then quality-checked by ecosystem experts to provide measured, quality-controlled analytics to show evidence of changes in nature and biodiversity on the ground. The data we provide can be used for regulatory disclosures and to guide actions, but we can also link evidence to a variety of financial mechanisms – such as sustainability-linked bonds and biodiversity credits – enabling money to flow to those projects and activities that create the most positive change.

Following our €5.6m seed round investment from some of Europe’s leading VCs and advocates for a better planet, we are growing our team to support our next stage of growth. We are here to build an institution that changes the way the world collaboratively works on one of the largest problems our planet is facing, and the only way we can do that is by bringing together a team who is passionate about restoring nature in new and exciting ways.

About the role

We are seeking a proven engineering lead with a strong technical background in AI/ML research, extensive technical experience, robust knowledge of machine learning and the ability to support and grow an engineering team as a player/coach. The ideal candidate will have experience as an ML lead at a well-renowned company or growth stage start-up and will be ready to apply this experience to help us shape our business. Reporting directly to the CTO, you will play a crucial role in defining our strategic vision, managing critical functions, and driving our business growth. This role offers a unique opportunity to join us on our exciting mission to incentivize the regeneration of biodiversity at scale.

Role responsibilities:

• Partner with technical and product leads to develop and implement the technical vision and strategy, ensuring alignment of the ML strategy with Pivotal’s mission & commercialisation timelines.
• Train, tune and debug production models, inform decisions on how to collect and synthesise training data.
• Work cross-functionally to define success metrics and roadmaps.
• Prioritise well, keeping processes lean and effective.
• Influence the development of the technical design and architecture of the stack.
• Cultivate a culture of collaboration, impact, innovation, and health.
• Attract, develop and grow engineering talent. Build and lead a high-performing team of ML specialists by fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning.

You should apply if you have:

• Prior hands-on ML development experience, creating and implementing machine learning models.
• Experience with either computer vision or acoustics models (acoustics preferred).
• Experience in solving complex production problems using state of the art ML techniques and taking research to production.
• Experience in managing research engineering teams and are passionate about fostering personal and professional growth in team members.
• Experience working in a project-based (“matrix”) operating environment, including experience with roadmap planning, stakeholder management, requirements gathering and alignment with peers towards milestones and deliverables.
• An entrepreneurial mindset and passion for building and growing a successful company, and the ability to work in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
• A desire to build ground-breaking technology to support the protection and restoration of the natural world.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills to engage with stakeholders at all levels, both technical and non-technical.
• A Master's or PhD in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Engineering, or another related technical field.
• Are (ideally) based in the UK or Western Europe.
• Experience with acoustic research and engineering is a plus.

What we offer you:

• Impact; you will be joining us in the early days of the business giving you plenty of opportunities to contribute to developing an entirely new discipline that will change how value is unlocked from nature.
• Autonomy; we want to build a culture of trust and give you the space to do your best work.
• Equity stake and competitive salary.
• Remote-first, fast-paced start-up environment.
• A fun and diverse team of smart and very driven people

We are a remote first diverse team from a broad range of backgrounds. We expect there will be areas where there is scope for personal development, so please do apply if you don’t feel that you meet all the criteria. We’re an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to age, ethnicity, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, family or parental status, national origin, veteran, neurodiversity, disability status or any other basis as protected by applicable law.