Lead Data Scientist

We are looking for a Lead Data Scientist with strong expertise in Large Language Models (LLMs) and Python to design AI-powered chatbot solutions for specialized use cases.

The ideal candidate brings a solid foundation in Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Conversational AI, along with hands-on experience in hallucination prevention, Responsible AI and compliance, and data analysis.

Responsibilities

• Team up with cross-functional groups spanning product, analytics, and engineering to build and refine a shopping assistant chatbot
• Craft and enhance prompt engineering strategies to elevate chatbot interactions
• Build LLM-based agents that connect with APIs, databases, and external tools through function calling
• Safeguard chatbot reliability and prevent hallucinations by applying model evaluation techniques
• Use A/B testing frameworks to measure and steadily improve chatbot performance
• Apply Responsible AI and compliance principles to secure ethical and regulatory alignment
• Perform exploratory data analysis to uncover insights and prepare structured requirements for the data engineering team
• Advise cloud engineering teams on the infrastructure needs behind AI-powered chatbot solutions

Requirements

• No less than 5 years of hands-on professional experience in data science
• At least 1 year of experience in people management or team leadership, covering a team of 5 or more FTEs
• Deep expertise in LLMs, including work with OpenAI APIs on Azure
• Strong Python capabilities for integrating and optimizing AI workflows
• Practical background in creating AI agents that use function calling to interact with external tools and databases
• Familiarity with hallucination prevention techniques for ensuring chatbot accuracy and reliability
• Solid grasp of Responsible AI and compliance best practices, including ethical AI guidelines
• Experience in Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Conversational AI development
• English at B2 level or higher, with strong written and spoken communication skills

Nice to have

• Applied experience with A/B testing and experimentation in close partnership with analytics teams
• Ability to shape and roll out a testing strategy that leverages key performance metrics for chatbots
• Proficiency in exploratory data analysis (EDA) to extract insights from data
• Skill in defining and communicating data requirements to the data engineering team
• Awareness of cloud services, either through hands-on experience or the capability to specify requirements for cloud engineering teams

We offer

• International projects with top brands
• Work with global teams of highly skilled, diverse peers
• Healthcare benefits
• Employee financial programs
• Paid time off and sick leave
• Upskilling, reskilling and certification courses
• Unlimited access to the LinkedIn Learning library and 22,000+ courses
• Global career opportunities
• Volunteer and community involvement opportunities
• EPAM Employee Groups
• Award-winning culture recognized by Glassdoor, Newsweek and LinkedIn

EPAM is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.