Materials Science Expert

About the Engagement

Office Hours is seeking experienced materials science researchers to contribute to an active AI research initiative focused on evaluating how advanced AI systems approach real-world materials science research problems.

As a Materials Science Expert, you’ll use your own research expertise to develop scientifically grounded problems, evaluate how AI models respond to them, and create expert-quality solutions that establish the correct answer and reasoning.

This is a fully remote, asynchronous opportunity designed for researchers interested in applying their expertise to the development and evaluation of advanced AI systems.

What You’ll Do

• Develop original research problems grounded in your area of materials science expertise
• Create detailed solutions and supporting reasoning
• Test problems against advanced AI models and evaluate their responses
• Identify where model responses succeed or fail scientifically
• Incorporate feedback and revisions to ensure submissions meet project quality standards
• Apply your research experience to create high-quality data for AI evaluation

Areas of Expertise

We’re interested in researchers across a broad range of materials science disciplines. Relevant work may involve metals and alloys, ceramics and glasses, polymers and soft matter, semiconductors and electronic materials, energy materials, biomaterials, composites, nanomaterials, materials chemistry or physics, computational materials science, characterization, processing, and related areas.

Ideal Qualifications

• PhD in materials science, materials science and engineering, or a closely related field, with substantial materials research experience
• Deep familiarity with the materials, methods, and scientific questions in your area of expertise
• Ability to develop research problems that require meaningful expert reasoning rather than straightforward factual recall
• Strong written communication skills and the ability to explain scientific reasoning clearly and precisely
• Peer-reviewed publications and/or substantial hands-on research experience strongly preferred
• Ability to work independently and incorporate feedback into revised submissions
• Prior experience with AI training, model evaluation, or data annotation is helpful but not required

Engagement Details

• Compensation: $800 per successfully reviewed and accepted submission; most submissions take approximately 5-8 hours to complete.
• Location: Fully remote
• Schedule: Asynchronous — complete the work on your own schedule
• Timing: The project is active now, with qualified participants being engaged on a rolling basis

Engagement Terms

• You will be engaged as an independent contractor, and no offer of continued engagement or employment is made or accepted by your participation
• All work included is project-based, and projects can extend, complete early, or stop based on needs
• You are responsible for ensuring that your participation does not conflict with any obligation you own to any third parties, including, but not limited to, current or former employers
• Your work will not involve or include any confidential, proprietary, or material non-public information belonging to or relating to any third party

About Office Hours & Expert Data Lab

Office Hours is an expert network that connects leading organizations with trusted experts across specialized knowledge domains. Experts earn income by sharing their knowledge through advisory work, research projects, and AI model training and evaluation.

Our Expert Data Lab (EDL) team works at the frontier of AI capabilities across medicine and biology, pairing experienced clinicians and practicing scientists with leading AI teams to support high-quality model training and evaluation.

We believe human expertise is one of the world’s most valuable assets. Through EDL, we’re creating new ways for domain experts to apply that knowledge directly to the development of increasingly capable AI systems.