Senior AI Engineer

World Resources Institute · Jakarta

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Consultant as Senior AI Engineer - Data Lab Indonesia

This is a hybrid position which requires 8 days per month in the office. You will be based in our office in WRI Indonesia, Jakarta. Existing work authorization is required at the time of application submission as WRI is unable to sponsor any visa work sponsorship for this position.

Program Overview

WRI Indonesia is an independent research organization that turns big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity, and human well-being. At WRI Indonesia, we aim to bring innovations in research and business approaches in order to create the enabling conditions for Indonesia to achieve robust economic growth while respecting environmental and social values. We seek to contribute to the accomplishment of ambitious sustainable development goals through working with leaders in public and private sectors, as well as collaborating with civil society organizations, in turning big ideas into action.

To achieve Indonesia’s climate goal while at the same time improving the livelihood of the communities and protecting biodiversity, we work together with partners to mainstream nature-based solutions (NbS) as an approach to address global climate challenge. We aim to achieve this through research, policy advocacy, and creation of a community of practice to develop new financing model for forest conservation, advocate regulatory framework that are conducive for NbS approach, and development of multi-stakeholder platform to amplify and accelerate NbS approach in Indonesia and Southeast Asia region.

SCeNe Coalition

The SCeNe Coalition is aimed to develop Triple Benefit Tools and Website for Southeast Asia Climate and Nature-based Solution (SCeNe) Coalition. Triple Benefit Tool will help to identify high impact future NbS opportunities, ensuring a targeted pipeline of NbS supply that focus on geographies with the highest conservation, social development and carbon potential. This tool will also help to validate triple benefit quality, giving the projects additional scientific credibility; to ensure finance is flowing transparently; and to increase ecosystem participation.

Data Lab Indonesia

The Data Lab Unit aims to establish a leading hub for open-source data, code, and visualizations, fostering data democratization and collaboration among NGOs and development partners. By addressing critical challenges such as unsustainable data platform management strategies, technical inconsistencies, and high employee turnover, the unit will ensure the long-term sustainability and impact of WRI Indonesia's platforms. This initiative transforms grant-dependent outputs into powerful tools for driving positive change in climate resilience, social equity, and nature conservation across Indonesia and Southeast Asia. Aligning with WRI's strategy, the Data Lab Unit promotes systemic, data-driven solutions, transitioning WRI's approach from isolated project delivery to broader systems change while enhancing institutional capabilities and addressing financial sustainability gaps to create scalable, impactful initiatives.

Job Highlight

The Senior AI Engineer will lead the technical development and evaluation of AI capabilities for the Dynamic Multilingual Translation and Document Generation initiative within the Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Tool. The role focuses on building reliable, source-grounded multilingual translation and AI-assisted document generation capabilities using existing Large Language Models (LLMs) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) approaches.

Working under the direct supervision of the Product and Engineering Manager, the Senior AI Engineer will working closely with the Product Manager and Backend Engineers, the consultant will evaluate suitable AI models, design and optimise AI pipelines, establish measurable quality standards, and provide technical guidance for integration into the NbS Tool. The consultant will play a key role in assessing technical feasibility, supporting the project's go/no-go decision, and preparing validated AI components for production deployment, subject to project approval. In support of WRI's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, the post holder will actively contribute to collaborative and inclusive ways of working across the project and organization.

What You Will Do

AI Engineering, Innovation and System Integration (80%)

• Lead the technical design and development of AI solutions for multilingual translation, RAG, and source-grounded content generation within the NbS Tool.
• Evaluate and compare existing AI models, including SeaLLM, SEA-LION, and other suitable alternatives, and recommend approaches based on quality, performance, operational cost, and technical feasibility.
• Develop and optimise multilingual translation capabilities, prioritising the existing Indonesian translation solution and a RAG-based approach for one additional Southeast Asian language.
• Improve RAG retrieval quality, source grounding, citation traceability, and robustness to ensure AI-generated content is reliable and supported by relevant source materials.
• Design and implement repeatable evaluation processes using appropriate automated metrics and human assessment to measure translation and content-generation quality against agreed success criteria.
• Develop and provide AI components and technical guidance to support integration with the NbS Tool's feasibility-report generation workflow, in collaboration with Backend Engineers.
• Support testing, technical optimisation, and production readiness of AI components, including performance, reliability, integration, and operational cost considerations, subject to the project's go/no-go decision.
• Prepare technical documentation covering AI architecture, model configurations, evaluation results, integration requirements, known limitations, and maintenance recommendations.

 Program Management (20%)

• Translate project requirements into feasible AI technical approaches, development priorities, and measurable outcomes in coordination with the Product Manager.
• Provide technical guidance and hands-on support to Backend Engineers to ensure effective implementation and integration of AI capabilities.
• Participate in technical planning, progress reviews, and regular evaluation of technical performance, risks, dependencies, and resource requirements.
• Present experimentation findings, technical limitations, quality assessments, and recommendations to support the project's go/no-go decision and subsequent implementation.
• Support technical reviews, User Acceptance Testing, knowledge transfer, and recommendations for future improvements or expansion of AI capabilities.

What You Will Need

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Software Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent relevant professional experience.
• At least 5 (five) years of relevant professional experience in AI/ML, NLP, or software engineering, including hands-on development of AI-enabled applications.
• Strong proficiency in Python and experience working with LLMs, Generative AI, and RAG-based applications.
• Practical experience designing, developing, evaluating, and optimising AI pipelines, including retrieval, embedding, reranking, prompt engineering, and source-grounding techniques.
• Experience assessing AI model performance and quality using appropriate automated evaluation methods, testing, and error analysis.
• Experience integrating AI services into backend systems or production-oriented web applications through APIs or similar interfaces.
• Understanding of multilingual NLP or machine translation, including challenges related to domain-specific terminology and translation accuracy.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, technical leadership, and communication skills, with the ability to collaborate across multidisciplinary teams.
• Ability to communicate technical findings and recommendations clearly in English, both verbally and in writing.
• Ability and willingness to travel when required.
• Legally able to work in Indonesia.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience developing multilingual AI applications for Southeast Asian languages or other low-resource languages.
• Familiarity with AI evaluation tools and metrics such as RAGAS, BLEU, chrF++, BERTScore, or equivalent approaches.
• Experience working with relevant AI frameworks, retrieval technologies, and infrastructure such as Hugging Face, PyTorch, FAISS, PostgreSQL, object storage, cloud services, or GPU-enabled environments.
• Familiarity with responsible AI practices, source citation, human-in-the-loop validation, and AI-assisted document generation.

Performance Standard

• Provides technically sound and practical AI architecture and implementation recommendations aligned with the project's objectives, available resources, and agreed success criteria.
• Demonstrates measurable progress in RAG retrieval, source grounding, and multilingual translation quality through documented and repeatable evaluations.
• Delivers agreed AI technical components and evaluation results within the project scope, with recommendations supported by evidence and clearly documented limitations.
• Ensures AI-generated content is evaluated for reliability, source traceability, and suitability for its intended use, with appropriate safeguards against unsupported outputs.
• Collaborates effectively with the Product Manager and Backend Engineers, provides timely technical guidance, and communicates potential risks or delivery constraints.
• Ensures AI components are appropriately tested, documented, maintainable, and ready for integration or handover, consistent with the project's go/no-go decision.

Duration

15 November 2026 – 31 May 2027

Deliverables

1. Deliver one documented AI architecture and model comparison, including recommended technical approaches, model selection, evaluation criteria, and implementation considerations as a basis for go/no go process prior to the development process.

2. Develop and evaluate AI translation capabilities for two committed languages (Indonesian and one agreed additional Southeast Asian language), including an optimised RAG pipeline, source-grounding and citation-validation mechanisms, documented quality evaluations against the Phase 1 baseline, technical feasibility assessment, and a comprehensive technical handover package covering configurations, limitations, infrastructure costs, and recommendations for future development.

3. Deliver production-ready AI translation and content-generation components, including technical integration support, testing, and resolution of critical AI-related issues.

Terms of Payment

Daily rate-based consultant with a maximum of 18 (eighteen) working days per month on average.

How to Apply:

• Please submit a resume with a cover letter by 10 November 2026. You must apply through the WRI Careers portal to be considered. We may close for applications sooner if we receive a high volume of applications from qualified candidates.
• Must have authorization to work in Indonesia to be eligible for this position.
• Final candidates might be required to take a certain test and/or to produce/share writing samples when needed.
• This is a locally engaged position, Indonesian nationals are encouraged to apply.

What we offer:

• Consultant rate that is commensurate with experience and skill.
• Travel insurance for both domestic and international for any travel duty as assigned by WRI Indonesia
• Access to the WRI global network with the opportunity to exchange with and learn from passionate colleagues working at the cutting edge of their fields.
• A workplace that strives to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our work
• The opportunity to join and get involved in different working groups and affinity groups to shape the future of WRI
• Commitment to hybrid working model with flexible working hours

About Us:

World Resources Institute works to improve people’s lives, protect and restore nature and stabilize the climate. As an independent research organization, we leverage our data, expertise and global reach to influence policy and catalyze change across systems like food, land and water; energy; and cities. Our 2,000+ staff work on the ground in more than a dozen focus countries and with partners in over 50 nations.

Our mission and values:

WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.

Our values are shared ideals that bind us together: Independence, Integrity, Impact, Partnership, and Care.

Our culture:

WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission including equal opportunities in employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, caste, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or protected Veteran status.

Our Human Resources Team carefully reviews all applications.

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