Machine Learning Engineer (Data Platforms + Agentic AI)
Upwork
Overview
We’re looking for a hands-on Machine Learning Engineer who can build, deploy, and iterate on real-world ML systems inside modern data platforms like Microsoft Fabric and BigQuery.
This is not a research role. You’ll work directly with messy operational data, build models that drive decisions, and integrate intelligent systems into production workflows.
You’ll also design retrieval-augmented systems (RAG) that combine structured warehouse data with unstructured context to power real decision-making—not just generate outputs.
You should be equally comfortable with
Data pipelines and warehouse architecture
Applied machine learning
Agentic AI systems that take action on data
What You’ll Do
Build and deploy ML models directly within data warehouse environments (Fabric, BigQuery, etc.)
Design pipelines that transform raw operational data into usable features
Identify patterns, anomalies, and optimization opportunities in large datasets
Integrate ML outputs into downstream systems via APIs, workflows, and automation
Develop agentic AI systems that interpret data, make decisions, and trigger actions
Work with engineering and operations teams to productionize models (not just prototype them)
Continuously improve model performance, reliability, and business impact
Design and implement RAG pipelines combining warehouse data with unstructured sources (documents, logs, operational data)
Build systems where LLMs retrieve, reason, and act on internal data
What We’re Looking For - Core Skills;
- Strong experience with machine learning in production environments
- Hands-on experience with BigQuery ML, Microsoft Fabric, or similar data-native ML tools
- Proficiency in Python
- Deep understanding of data modeling, feature engineering, and pipeline design
- Experience working with APIs, webhooks, and system integrations
- Agentic AI / Modern AI Stack
- Experience building or working with LLM-powered systems
- Strong understanding of RAG architectures (chunking, embeddings, retrieval strategies, evaluation)
- Ability to combine structured (SQL/warehouse) and unstructured (vector/semantic) data
- Experience designing systems where models don’t just predict—but take action
- Data & Systems Thinking
-Comfortable working inside data warehouses as the primary compute layer
-Experience with ELT pipelines (dbt, Airbyte, or custom pipelines)
-Strong SQL skills (non-negotiable)**
Bonus Points;
Experience with real-time or near real-time decision systems
Familiarity with workflow/orchestration tools (n8n, Airflow, Prefect)
Experience in manufacturing, operations, or scheduling systems.
Exposure to vector databases, embeddings, or hybrid ML + LLM systems.
What Success Looks Like;
You turn messy data into working systems quickly
You ship production systems—not just notebooks
You think in end-to-end systems, not isolated models
You own problems from data ingestion → model → action
Who This Is NOT For;
Agencies of any kind.
Purely academic or research-focused ML engineers
People who only build models in notebooks and don’t deploy
Engineers without strong data or SQL experience
Candidates whose experience is limited to basic RAG demos or prompt engineering without real pipelines
Once again -- NO AGENCIES.