Audio Engineering Expert (SME) - Freelance Project

Meridial Marketplace, by Invisible is seeking a highly experienced Audio professional consultant to serve on AI training data projects for leading AI model builders and enterprises. The role focuses on defining success criteria, reviewing outputs, and providing guidance to improve quality and speed, directly contributing to the delivery of domain-specific annotated datasets.

Responsibilities:

• Define domain-specific quality success metrics (e.g., 48 kHz sample rate, 24-bit depth, mono per talent, uncompressed WAV/Linear PCM)
• Develop project-specific SOPs, QA rubrics, and reference materials for the specific purpose of meeting client technical standards
• Review project outputs (recordings, annotations) against technical standards, flagging and correcting defects before client delivery
• Perform structured QA passes on daily/weekly drops; flag, track, and resolve defects quickly to hit delivery deadlines
• Return files to contractors with precise remediation notes
• Provide advisory input on recording pipelines, mic requirements, and room treatment to meet quality benchmarks
• Handle spec changes and edge-case scenarios — e.g., evaluation of new client codec/format requests — drafting acceptance criteria or workarounds
• Curate example libraries of 'gold standard' clips to calibrate the team and assess comparability to agreed sample references
• Participate in vetting and assessing technical contractor talent for specific projects
• Review sample work from contractors and provide precise, actionable written feedback to improve outputs
• Create targeted training or calibration resources — e.g., mic technique, gain staging, room treatment, and noise mitigation
• Advise on technical scoping and requirements during project setup
• Provide expert guidance for edge cases, technical exceptions, and specification changes
• Contribute to post-project reviews to capture lessons learned and improve future standards
• Identify and summarize client model observations and insights
• Build dashboards or trackers with defect categories and recurrence to surface production insights that improve project outcomes
• Conduct post-mortems, analyze defect trends, and propose process tweaks or training refreshers

Requirements:

• Deep technical expertise and 3+ years professional experience in audio engineering, dialog/voice recording, or post-production QA
• Mastery of digital audio standards (48 kHz, 24-bit, mono, uncompressed WAV/Linear PCM)
• Proven ability to set, enforce, and maintain high technical standards in audio production and QA
• Strong communication skills for delivering clear technical guidance
• Experience producing technical documentation, quality rubrics, or training resources
• Ability to work within fixed project timelines and scope
• Strong attention to detail, documentation discipline, and commitment to accuracy and consistency
• Fluency in spoken and written English, with clear and concise writing skills