---
title: 'Senior UX Researcher at Handshake'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-ux-researcher-handshake-san-francisco-a2qqvaemnx1m'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-09'
---

# Senior UX Researcher at Handshake

- **Company:** [Handshake](https://feeny.ai/companies/handshake)
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-08-12
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-09
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/handshake/bc2767a2-6c19-4fb5-8af6-27a0f67f80ed

## Job description

## About Handshake

Handshake was founded on a simple belief that everyone deserves a path to a great career, regardless of where they went to school or who they know. Today, we power 25 million job seekers, 1 million+ employers, and 1,600 educational institutions.

In 2025, we started Handshake AI and built the fastest-growing AI data business in history. We work directly with frontier AI lab researchers to create evaluations, publish benchmarks, and push the boundary of data. We've grown from $0 to ~$1B run rate and pay ~$60M to over 30K individuals every month.

Why join Handshake now:

- Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel
- Partner hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world's top educational institutions
- Work together with engineers, scientists, operators, and more from Palantir, Meta, Scale AI, and former YC founders
- Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue

## About Handshake AI

Human data is the core infrastructure to AI advancement. Frontier AI labs currently improve model capabilities with various data-intensive post-training techniques. We believe that data spend for AI training will increase by 3-5x in the next few years and continue for much longer as models take on new domains. Handshake AI supports all of the frontier AI labs, working on their most complex data at the largest scale.

Handshake AI is rapidly building a new generation of human data products—from expert annotation platforms to AI interviewers and seamless payout infrastructure—all designed to accelerate research and improve model performance. We power career platforms at 92% of the top U.S. universities, giving us direct access to verified expert talent across a wide range of domains.

## The Role

We're hiring a Senior UX Researcher to research how professionals across industries actually do their jobs, and turn that understanding into structured taxonomies that shape how frontier AI models are trained and evaluated. This work directly informs how the largest AI labs in the world invest in professional agent development. You'll also partner closely with our Reinforcement Learning Environments team, blending taxonomy research with traditional UXR to co-develop model training techniques.

## Responsibilities

- Taxonomy Development: Design, build, and continuously refine a scalable taxonomy of jobs, sub-domains, distinct user tasks, tools, and data used across various job roles.
- Mixed-Methods Research: Plan and execute both qualitative (interviews, observational studies) and quantitative (surveys, behavioral data analysis) user research to inform and validate the taxonomy.
- AI-Moderated Research at Scale: Leverage AI-moderated user research tools to conduct, synthesize, and extract qualitative insights from large user cohorts efficiently.
- Task Prioritization & Ranking: Apply basic statistical methods (e.g., MaxDiff, forced ranking, opportunity scoring, weighting, and imputation) to evaluate, rank, and prioritize tasks based on user importance, frequency, and current pain points.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Product, Design, AI Research, Operations and Engineering to ensure the job and task taxonomy directly informs product strategy and feature development.
- Insight Synthesis: Translate complex, multi-layered research data into clear, actionable frameworks, user models, and documentation.

You Have

- Experience: 5+ years of experience in UX Research, Information Architecture, Taxonomy, Applied Economics, Human Computer Interaction or a closely related field focusing on user behavior.
- Research Expertise: Proven ability to independently design and run rigorous qualitative and quantitative research studies.
- Taxonomy & Frameworks: Strong understanding of classification systems, hierarchical modeling, and frameworks like Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD). Previous experience building taxonomies specifically for B2B software, HR tech, or professional tooling.
- Statistical Literacy and Survey Science: Solid understanding of foundational statistics necessary for quantitative user research. You should be comfortable designing surveys and analyzing data to objectively rank and prioritize user tasks.
- Tech-Forward Approach: Experience with, or a strong willingness to master, AI-moderated user research platforms to scale qualitative data collection.
- Communication: Exceptional analytical and communication skills, with the ability to present complex architectural concepts to stakeholders simply and effectively.

## Nice to Have

- Familiarity with advanced prioritization frameworks or willingness to develop your own framework.
- Experience with advanced scripting techniques used for data analysis.
- Bayesian statistics

## We Offer

Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supported and thrive at work and in life.

The below benefits are for full-time US employees.

🎯 Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company

💰 Financial Wellness: 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching

🍼 Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching

💝 Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend

📚 Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development

💻 Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office

🏝 Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days

🤝 Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses

Explore our mission, values, and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers http://joinhandshake.com/careers. http://joinhandshake.com/careers.Your

## About Handshake

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Handshake is the career network for the AI economy, connecting job seekers with internships, full-time roles, freelance gigs, and AI training work through a three-sided marketplace.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series F; total funding $434M across 6 rounds)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2014
- **Founders**: Garrett Lord (CEO), Ben Christensen, Scott Ringwelski

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Career platform / Job marketplace / AI workforce infrastructure
- **Target customers**: B2C (job seekers, from students to experienced professionals) and B2B (employers including 100% of Fortune 500 and all foundational AI labs; also educational institutions)
- **Mission**: Expand access and improve outcomes for job seekers, helping the workforce stay ahead in the AI economy.

## Products & Services
- **Handshake Core Platform**: A three-sided marketplace connecting 25 million knowledge workers, 1,600+ schools, and 1 million employers. Features dynamic profiles, intelligent job matching, and interactive skill-building.
- **Handshake AI Enterprise**: AI-powered tools for employers and job seekers, including AI-driven matching, safety features, and pay management.
- **AI Trainer Gigs**: Paid, flexible, remote work for individuals to train and evaluate AI models (e.g., AI Evaluation Specialist, up to $40/hr) – no prior AI experience required.
- **Handshake Network**: Community events, career advice, and networking for students, experts, and professionals in AI and other fields.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total funding $434M (6 rounds); annual revenue $56.5M (LinkedIn estimate)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Board includes representatives from General Catalyst, Kleiner Perkins, EQT Ventures, True Ventures, and Niantic. Strategic partners include 100% of the Fortune 500 and foundational AI labs.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount at 5,272 employees (+708.8% YoY per LinkedIn); 1M+ companies on platform; 25M users; expansion into AI trainer gig economy; new roles in HAI (Handshake AI Enterprise) such as Applied AI Engineer, AI Platform Engineer, and Forward Deployed Engineer.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Network effects**: The only three-sided marketplace linking students, employers, and educational institutions at scale.
- **AI-first positioning**: Deep integration of AI into job matching, skill-building, and new freelance training roles – creating a unique ecosystem for the AI economy.
- **Trusted by elite institutions**: 1,600+ partner schools and every Fortune 500 company provides unparalleled reach into early-career talent.

## Strategic Focus
- **AI economy expansion**: Building the “career network for the AI economy” – expanding beyond college students to all knowledge workers, and adding AI training gigs as a new revenue and engagement stream.
- **Product innovation**: Heavy investment in Handshake AI Enterprise (HAI), including AI matching, safety, and pay infrastructure.
- **Global scaling**: Offices in San Francisco, New York, UK, and Bangalore; operating in 32 countries.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Values include “Students first,” “Leave nothing to chance,” “Own the outcome,” “Invent and reinvent,” and “Olympic pace.” Emphasis on ownership, urgency, and constant evolution.
- **Remote/Hybrid policy**: Many roles are based in San Francisco or New York, but some positions (e.g., Trust & Safety Specialist, Support Specialist) are remote in the US. Recent openings show both office and remote options.
- **Benefits**: Health & wellness support, financial support, time off, modern offices with meals, snacks, and social activities. Strong focus on career growth and learning.
- **Career growth**: Rapid headcount growth suggests ample internal mobility; roles range from engineering (ML, AI, data) to customer success, partnerships, and product management.

## Sources
1. [joinhandshake.com/about](https://joinhandshake.com/about/)
2. [joinhandshake.com/careers](https://joinhandshake.com/careers/)
3. [linkedin.com/company/team-handshake](https://www.linkedin.com/company/team-handshake)
4. [joinhandshake.com](https://joinhandshake.com/)

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