Senior Data Scientist at Uplight – Remote

At Uplight, we’re pioneering a new frontier in energy management. Our software platforms orchestrate distributed energy resources (DERs) in homes and businesses—from smart thermostats and electric vehicles to solar systems, battery storage, heat pumps, and even user behavior—to help generate, shift, and conserve electricity. This innovative approach creates cleaner capacity on the grid, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and enabling a more efficient, resilient energy system. Our work empowers utilities, enhances grid stability, and accelerates the clean energy transition—all while saving customers money.

We’re Hiring: Data Scientist – Optimization & Software Engineering

We are looking for a talented and motivated Data Scientist with strong skills in optimization and software engineering to join our Predictive Controls team. This team drives the intelligent orchestration of flexible energy assets—maximizing their participation in grid services such as virtual power plants (VPPs), energy arbitrage, demand response, ancillary services, and broader market-based solutions.

We’re seeking someone who combines deep knowledge of power systems and energy markets with hands-on experience in optimization modeling and robust software development practices. You’ll collaborate across product, engineering, and external partners to design and deploy advanced control systems that operate in live, production environments.

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Your Impact at Uplight

Energy Systems Modeling & Market Expertise

• Develop and enhance optimization models for distributed and flexible energy assets across residential, commercial, and industrial settings.

• Design dispatch strategies that align with energy market rules, regulatory guidelines, and system operational constraints.

• Translate complex regulatory requirements (e.g., capacity bidding, frequency regulation) into actionable modeling frameworks.

Optimization Development

• Build and implement scalable optimization models using libraries like Pyomo, AMPL, or equivalent.

• Apply solvers (Gurobi, CPLEX, or open-source tools) to address large-scale scheduling and dispatch problems.

• Optimize model performance by balancing speed, accuracy, and interpretability to meet business needs.

Production-Level Software Engineering

• Write clean, maintainable, and modular Python code suitable for production.

• Utilize modern DevOps practices including Git, Docker, Kubernetes, and CI/CD tools to ensure reliable deployments.

• Contribute to the architecture of optimization and control software, ensuring code quality and scalability.

Operational Support & Reliability

• Monitor and debug real-time optimization workflows in production environments.

• Diagnose and resolve issues across data ingestion, modeling, and infrastructure layers.

• Implement observability best practices using logs, metrics, and alerting to ensure uptime and performance.

Customer-Driven Customization

• Adapt and tailor optimization logic to accommodate customer-specific asset behaviors, constraints, and contractual nuances.

• Communicate technical solutions and model behavior clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

• Work with customer success and implementation teams to align models with real-world deployments.

Testing & Quality Assurance

• Build robust integration tests that span across key platform components.

• Set up automated regression tests to protect model integrity as the system evolves.

• Simulate edge cases and rare grid events to ensure optimization logic performs reliably under stress.

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What You Bring

• Demonstrated experience in applying mathematical optimization (LP, MILP) to real-world systems—preferably in the energy sector.

• Proficiency in Python and a strong foundation in professional software development.

• Deep understanding of electricity markets, distributed energy systems, and VPP operations.

• Hands-on experience with modeling frameworks like Pyomo or AMPL, and solvers like Gurobi or CPLEX.

• Familiarity with software development tools (Git, Docker, CI/CD) and observability best practices.

• Strong problem-solving skills and an ability to navigate trade-offs between model complexity and performance.

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Preferred Qualifications (Bonus Points)

• Direct experience working with DERs such as batteries, HVAC systems, EV chargers, or thermal storage.

• Exposure to mission-critical or real-time systems and their performance constraints.

• Comfort working in cloud environments (AWS, GCP, Azure) with knowledge of scalable deployment practices.

• Past experience in a customer-facing technical role or consulting capacity.

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Why Uplight?

Make a Real Difference: Your work directly supports the global clean energy transition and helps reduce carbon emissions at scale.
Invest in Your Growth: We prioritize continuous learning and career development through mentorship, training programs, and advancement opportunities.
Wellness & Flexibility: Enjoy flexible PTO, generous parental leave, wellness stipends, and remote-friendly work policies.
Diversity & Belonging: We celebrate diverse voices and create inclusive spaces through employee resource groups and equitable hiring practices.
Purpose-Driven Culture: As a certified B Corp, we hold ourselves to high standards for social and environmental impact.

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Compensation & Details

• Salary Range: $150,000–$190,000 USD annually + bonus

• Application Deadline: August 15, 2025

• Location: U.S.-based remote work or hybrid at select locations

This salary range is provided in accordance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The actual offer will reflect the candidate’s qualifications, experience, and alignment with internal team structures.

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Equal Opportunity Employer

Uplight is committed to equal employment opportunity for all, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected status. We value diverse backgrounds and are inclusive of all perspectives—including neurodivergence and nontraditional experiences.

💰 High-Paying Role — Check It Out

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