Senior Data Scientist, Alexa For Shopping (Rufus)

$159K - $215K Seattle, WA, US Senior Data Scientist

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Skills & Technologies

AutogenAwsBedrockCrewaiPythonRagSagemakerVector Search

About This Role

AI job market dashboard showing open roles by category

DESCRIPTION

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We are building a agentic intelligence system that transforms unstructured, noisy customer\-data into actionable intelligence for product analytics to guide evolution of Amazon Shopping CX's — surfacing metrics on demand and insights unprompted, without an analyst in the loop.

We are solving one of the hardest problems in the agent driven data intelligence space to isolate insights from noise. This role will own multi agent system orchestration and context management; self\-improving agent layer that gets measurably better over time without human intervention and reliable signal extraction from unstructured data and proactive intelligence that detects what matters before anyone asks.

Our agentic system is in production. What we don't yet have is a system that evaluates its own output quality, identifies where it fails, and closes that feedback loop automatically.

Key job responsibilities

As Senior Data Scientist, you will own the multi agent orchestration and the self\-improvement system end\-to\-end. You will also own designing the overall architecture to extract insights from unstructured data at scale. You will work directly with the principal engineer, influence the technical roadmap across the team, and partner with SDE's.

  • This role requires operating independently on problems that are not well\-defined or structured, identifying and framing research challenges across broad problem areas, and delivering end\-to\-end solutions that have significant impact on the product.
  • Own the multi\-agent topology (Planner Worker Reasoner Loop Controller) — inter\-agent communication protocols, and loop termination logic
  • Design and manage the context window strategy across agents
  • Own all system prompts, routing prompts, and chain\-of\-thought scaffolding across agents
  • Define what "better" means across dimensions (factual grounding, hypothesis novelty, evidence completeness, reasoning coherence) without ground\-truth labels at scale
  • Design how eval signal propagates back into prompt updates and model routing decisions
  • Own schema grounding, sparse vector indexing, and domain\-scoped kNN queries
  • Own embedding strategy, intent classification accuracy, and entity extraction quality

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

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  • 4\+ years of data scientist experience
  • 5\+ years of data querying languages (e.g. SQL), scripting languages (e.g. Python) or statistical/mathematical software (e.g. R, SAS, Matlab, etc.) experience
  • Experience with statistical models e.g. multinomial logistic regression
  • 5\+ years of working with Data \& AI related technologies, including, but not limited to, AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning), GenAI (Generative AI), Analytics, Database, and/or Storage experience
  • Python proficiency — statistical modeling, data manipulation (pandas, numpy, scipy), and scripting across ML pipelines and evaluation infrastructure
  • Demonstrated experience extracting structured signal from unstructured text at scale — NLP pipelines, intent classification, entity extraction, or equivalent

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

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  • Experience with multi\-agent system evaluation and independently and end\-to\-end
  • Production RAG or retrieval system experience — embedding strategy, vector search, hybrid retrieval, similarity threshold calibration
  • AWS Bedrock or Strands SDK experience — or equivalent orchestration framework (LangGraph, CrewAI, AutoGen)
  • Graph database experience (Neptune, Neo4j) — schema design, traversal queries, knowledge graph construction
  • Experience scaling NLP inference pipelines — model sizing decisions, batching strategy, SageMaker or equivalent endpoint optimization
  • Business intelligence or analytics domain background — metric definitions, dimensional modeling, causal inference
  • Track record of publishing at peer\-reviewed venues or presenting at industry conferences

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how\-we\-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign\-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life \& AD\&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, WA, Seattle \- 159,200\.00 \- 215,300\.00 USD annually

Salary Context

This $159K-$215K range is above the 75th percentile for Data Scientist roles in our dataset (median: $155K across 226 roles with salary data).

View full Data Scientist salary data →

Role Details

Company Amazon.com
Title Senior Data Scientist, Alexa For Shopping (Rufus)
Location Seattle, WA, US
Category Data Scientist
Experience Senior
Salary $159K - $215K
Remote No

About This Role

Data Scientists extract insights and build predictive models from data. In the AI era, many roles now include LLM-powered analytics, automated reporting, and integration with generative AI tools. The role has evolved from 'the person who runs SQL queries' to 'the person who builds AI-powered data products.'

Modern data science roles fall into two camps: analytics-focused (insights, dashboards, experimentation) and ML-focused (building predictive models, recommendation systems, NLP features). The best data scientists can operate in both modes. The AI shift means that even analytics-focused roles now involve building automated insight pipelines using LLMs, going well beyond one-off reports.

Across the 3,708 AI roles we're tracking, Data Scientist positions make up 8% of the market. At Amazon.com, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.

Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.

What the Work Looks Like

A typical week includes: analyzing experiment results for a product feature launch, building a predictive model for customer churn, creating an automated reporting pipeline using LLM-powered summarization, presenting insights to stakeholders, and cleaning data (always cleaning data). The ratio of analysis to engineering varies by company, but expect both.

Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.

Skills Required

Autogen (3% of roles) Aws (30% of roles) Bedrock (6% of roles) Crewai (3% of roles) Python (51% of roles) Rag (23% of roles) Sagemaker (5% of roles) Vector Search (3% of roles)

Python, SQL, and statistical modeling are the foundation. Increasingly, roles want experience with LLMs for data analysis, automated insight generation, and building AI-powered data products. Familiarity with cloud data platforms (Snowflake, BigQuery, Databricks) and ML frameworks (scikit-learn, PyTorch) covers most job requirements.

Experimentation design and causal inference are underrated skills that separate strong candidates. Companies care about whether their product changes cause improvements, and can distinguish causation from correlation. A/B testing methodology, Bayesian statistics, and the ability to communicate uncertainty to non-technical stakeholders are high-value skills.

Good postings specify the data stack, the types of problems you'll work on, and the team structure. Look for companies that differentiate between analytics and ML data science. Vague 'data scientist' postings that list every skill under the sun usually mean the company doesn't know what they need.

Compensation Benchmarks

Data Scientist roles pay a median of $192,890 based on 463 positions with disclosed compensation. Senior-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $230,000. Disclosed range: $159K to $215K.

Across all AI roles, the market median is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($300,000) and Research Engineer ($280,000). By seniority level: Entry: $120,000; Mid: $200,000; Senior: $230,000; Director: $272,150; VP: $250,000.

Amazon.com AI Hiring

Amazon.com has 97 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across Research Scientist, AI/ML Engineer, Data Scientist, AI Product Manager. Positions span Sunnyvale, CA, US, Culver City, CA, US, San Francisco, CA, US. Compensation range: $97K - $327K.

Location Context

AI roles in Seattle pay a median of $236,900 across 267 tracked positions. That's 9% above the national median.

Career Path

Common paths into Data Scientist roles include Data Analyst, Statistician, Quantitative Researcher.

From here, career progression typically leads toward Senior Data Scientist, ML Engineer, AI Product Manager.

Start with statistics and SQL. Build a real analysis project on public data that demonstrates insight generation alongside model building. The market values data scientists who can communicate findings clearly to business stakeholders. If you want to move toward ML engineering, invest in software engineering fundamentals and production deployment skills.

What to Expect in Interviews

Interviews combine statistics, coding, and business acumen. SQL is almost always tested, often with complex joins and window functions. Expect a case study round where you're given a business problem and asked to design an analysis plan. Coding rounds focus on pandas, statistical modeling, and visualization. The strongest differentiator is how well you communicate insights to non-technical stakeholders during presentation rounds.

When evaluating opportunities: Good postings specify the data stack, the types of problems you'll work on, and the team structure. Look for companies that differentiate between analytics and ML data science. Vague 'data scientist' postings that list every skill under the sun usually mean the company doesn't know what they need.

AI Hiring Overview

The AI job market has 3,708 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 102 entry-level, 1,705 mid-level, 1,469 senior, and 432 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 14% of the market (508 positions). The remaining 3,180 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.

The market median for AI roles is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($300,000 median, 21 roles); Research Engineer ($280,000 median, 147 roles); AI Architect ($254,798 median, 67 roles).

Data Scientist roles remain in high demand, though the definition keeps shifting. Companies increasingly want candidates who can bridge traditional statistics with modern ML and LLM capabilities. The 'pure insights' data scientist role is consolidating into analytics engineering, while the 'build models' data scientist role is merging with ML engineering.

The AI Job Market Today

The AI job market spans 3,708 open positions across 16 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (2,605), Data Scientist (310), AI Software Engineer (259). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.

The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (102) are outnumbered by mid-level (1,705) and senior (1,469) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 432 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.

Remote work availability sits at 14% of all AI roles (508 positions), with 3,180 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.

AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $217,500. Top-quartile roles start at $272,100, and the 90th percentile reaches $325,000. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.

Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $300,000 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $140,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.

The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (1,890 postings), Aws (1,103 postings), Azure (877 postings), Rag (855 postings), Gcp (631 postings), Prompt Engineering (560 postings), Pytorch (545 postings), Claude (498 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.

Frequently Asked Questions

Based on 463 roles with disclosed compensation, the median salary for Data Scientist positions is $192,890. Actual compensation varies by seniority, location, and company stage.
Python, SQL, and statistical modeling are the foundation. Increasingly, roles want experience with LLMs for data analysis, automated insight generation, and building AI-powered data products. Familiarity with cloud data platforms (Snowflake, BigQuery, Databricks) and ML frameworks (scikit-learn, PyTorch) covers most job requirements.
About 14% of the 3,708 AI roles we track offer remote work. Remote availability varies by company and seniority level, with senior and leadership roles more likely to offer location flexibility.
Amazon.com is among the companies actively hiring for AI and ML talent. Check our company profiles for detailed breakdowns of open roles, salary ranges, and hiring trends.
Common next steps from Data Scientist positions include Senior Data Scientist, ML Engineer, AI Product Manager. Progression depends on whether you lean toward technical depth, people management, or product strategy.

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