Energetic Materials Chemist - Specialist

About the role

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark, General Catalyst, Peter Thiel, Adam D'Angelo, Larry Summers, and Jack Dorsey. Position: Specialty Materials Chemist — Pyrotechnics or Propulsion. Type: Contract. Location: Remote.

Responsibilities

• Write challenging single-turn prompts in the domain of energetic materials and propulsion.
• Classify them as benign, dual-use, or adversarial.
• Evaluate model responses against a defined policy standard.
• Judge the correctness of each response.
• Write reference answers that include correct responses and the technical reasoning behind them.
• Collaborate with practitioners to draw reliable lines between routine and dangerous questions.
• Work independently and asynchronously to ensure model accuracy and safety.

Qualifications

• Must-Have: Experience in formulation, synthesis, and testing of specialty energetic materials in a licensed or government facility.
• Must-Have: Ability to distinguish routine professional questions from potentially dangerous ones.
• Must-Have: Prior technical writing, published research, or expert witness experience.
• Preferred: Red-teaming experience in the field of energetic materials.

Pay

Compensation: $65–$75/hour. Hourly contractor, paid weekly via Stripe Connect.