Expert Specialized Systems Engineer – PHP / Fortran / Slang
MercorDescription
About the Opportunity
A leading AI research organization is evaluating how advanced AI systems perform in specialized engineering domains, and is seeking expert engineers with deep, hands-on experience in PHP, Fortran, and/or Slang. You'll apply your expertise to assess complex, real-world technical scenarios — directly shaping how cutting-edge AI performs across web, scientific-computing, and graphics domains. Single-language specialists are strongly encouraged to apply.
What You'll Do
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Apply your language expertise to evaluate technical tasks against real-world professional standards
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Review intricate code-level situations and provide precise, structured written assessments
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Work inside containerized repositories (Docker), running and interpreting programmatic and CI-style checks to judge whether an engineering environment is sound
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Provide clear written rationales explaining your expert judgments
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Complete well-defined, time-bounded tasks with explicit evaluation criteria
Who We're Looking For
We value strong engineering fundamentals, fast ramp-up, and high ownership over single-language pedigree alone — but deep specialists are very welcome. The ideal candidate brings:
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5+ years of professional or research experience in one or more of:
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PHP — modern PHP (8+); Laravel or Symfony; large-scale web backends
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Fortran — modern Fortran (90/95/2003+); MPI or OpenMP parallelization; HPC, scientific computing, CFD, or computational physics
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Slang — GPU shader and graphics programming; real-time rendering; DirectX, Vulkan, or CUDA workflows; NVIDIA Falcor or similar frameworks
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Comfort working in Linux/Docker-based repo environments and reading automated/CI checks — or the ability to ramp on these fast
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Ability to articulate not just what code does but why it's correct or idiomatic, clearly in writing
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Welcomed: engineers from web-platform, HPC/national-lab/academic, or graphics-research and game-engine backgrounds; non-traditional digital footprints are fine — a GitHub profile is not required
Why This Work Matters
PHP, Fortran, and Slang underpin the modern web, scientific computing, and GPU graphics respectively — domains with rare depth in AI research. Your assessments directly influence how AI systems learn to operate in them.
Engagement Details
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Compensation: $100–200/hour, based on language, domain, and experience
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Expected commitment: 20–40 hrs/week
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Task flow is variable — work tends to arrive in waves, and there can be a lag between task batches. We're looking for people who stay flexible, including availability on weekends when needed, and who take ownership of keeping the project moving forward
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No proprietary tooling required — tasks are completable without employer-provided systems
Interested in this position?
Apply directly on the company's website