Senior Technical Program Manager

Caper, an Instacart team building AI-powered checkout experiences, is on the cutting edge of physical AI, bringing computer vision and on-device machine learning to the real world through smart carts and connected retail hardware.

We are seeking a Senior Technical Program Manager to lead complex, multi-quarter machine learning & computer vision engineering programs that power the heart of Caper: high-quality data pipelines, robust model training and evaluation, and reliable on-cart deployment at scale. You will partner closely with computer vision and machine learning engineers, Android engineers, hardware teams, product, operations, and the executive team to build the roadmap, drive execution, and deliver measurable improvements to model performance and in-store outcomes.

This role is ideal for a builder who thrives in a fast-paced, evolving environment and enjoys rolling up their sleeves to turn complex, cross-functional work into predictable delivery. Remote-friendly across the US and Canada, with a preference for West Coast time zones to maximize collaboration with our partners.

Minimum Qualifications

• 6+ years of technical program management experience, ideally leading end-to-end ML/AI programs from data to production.
• 3+ years working on computer vision or edge/on-device ML for embedded, mobile, or hardware-integrated products.
• Proven track record delivering 3+ production ML model releases or ML-powered features with measurable impact on product metrics.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical/Computer Engineering, or a related technical field; or equivalent practical experience.
• Hands-on familiarity with the ML lifecycle, including data pipelines, labeling/annotation workflows, model training/evaluation, and MLOps/CI-CD for ML.
• Ability to query and analyze data using SQL and basic Python to validate assumptions and interpret model and product performance.
• Experience coordinating cross-functional teams of 10+ stakeholders, including external vendors, with strong risk, dependency, and change management.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including executive-level reporting and decision facilitation.
• Willingness to travel to stores, labs, and partner sites as needed (up to 15%).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in retail technology, robotics, autonomous systems, or other physical AI domains.
• Knowledge of on-device inference optimization and tooling (e.g., TensorRT, Core ML, TensorFlow Lite) and performance tradeoffs on constrained hardware.
• Background establishing data quality standards and managing third-party labeling vendors at scale.
• Familiarity with privacy, security, and compliance considerations for in-store data collection (e.g., GDPR, CCPA).
• Graduate degree in a relevant technical field.
• Experience integrating hardware components (cameras, depth sensors, scales) and leading calibration/validation workflows.
• Ability to create dashboards and operational telemetry for model and program health using tools like Looker, Mode, or similar.

Instacart provides highly market-competitive compensation and benefits in each location where our employees work. This role is remote and the base pay range for a successful candidate is dependent on their permanent work location. Offers may vary based on many factors, such as candidate experience and skills required for the role. For US based candidates, the base pay ranges for a successful candidate are listed below.

CA, NY, CT, NJ: $214,000 - $226,000 USD
WA: $205,000 - $216,000 USD
OR, DE, ME, MA, MD, NH, RI, VT, DC, PA, VA, CO, TX, IL, HI: $196,000 - $207,000 USD
All other states: $178,000 - $188,000 USD