Senior Data Scientist

Job Description

Uplight is creating a new category of energy. We make software that manages energy resources in homes and businesses—including things like smart thermostats, electric vehicles, solar panels, storage batteries, heat pumps, and even people’s behavior—to generate, shift, or save energy to balance the grid, making it more efficient and reliable. This creates clean energy capacity that can be used by the power grid instead of burning more fossil fuels. Our solutions accelerate the transition to clean energy and save money for energy customers.

We are seeking a highly skilled Data Scientist with a focus on Optimization and Software Engineering to join our Predictive Controls team. Our team is responsible for optimizing and dispatching flexible energy resources to participate in a variety of grid and market services, including virtual power plants (VPPs), wholesale energy arbitrage, ancillary services, demand response, and grid support.

The ideal candidate brings a deep understanding of electricity markets, strong analytical and modeling capabilities, and robust software engineering skills to deploy and maintain optimization logic in a production environment. You will work at the intersection of energy systems, mathematical optimization, and software development, collaborating closely with both internal teams and external customers.

How you will make an impact

Domain Knowledge & Modeling

• Develop and maintain models of distributed energy resources (DERs) and flexible energy assets for operational and financial optimization.
• Apply knowledge of electricity markets and grid services to build realistic and effective dispatch strategies.
• Understand and interpret regulatory frameworks and market mechanisms (e.g., frequency regulation, capacity markets, bidding logic).

Optimization & Modeling

• Build, test, and deploy optimization models using tools like Pyomo, AMPL, or similar.
• Use solvers such as Gurobi, CPLEX, or open-source alternatives for solving large-scale scheduling and dispatch problems.
• Design models that balance performance, scalability, and interpretability.

Software Engineering

• Develop production-grade software, primarily in Python, with strong attention to clean code, modularity, and performance.
• Work with version control (Git), CI/CD tools, and containerization (Docker/Kubernetes) for robust development workflows.
• Contribute to codebase architecture, testing frameworks, and deployment pipelines.

Production Support & Reliability

• Monitor, debug, and improve live optimization systems and supporting data pipelines.
• Troubleshoot complex issues across modeling, data quality, and infrastructure layers.
• Use observability tools (e.g., logging, metrics, alerting) to maintain system reliability.

Customer-Facing Solution Engineering

• Interpret and implement non-standard customer requirements, including unique asset behaviors or contractual obligations.
• Customize optimization logic and integrate customer-specific configurations.
• Communicate technical concepts clearly to non-technical stakeholders and customers.

Testing & Quality Assurance

• Design integration tests that span multiple platform components (e.g., configurator + optimizer + forecast + dispatch).
• Implement regression testing to safeguard against unintended model changes.
• Simulate edge cases and real-world scenarios to validate robustness and performance.

What you bring to Uplight

• Proven experience in mathematical optimization (e.g., LP, MILP), especially in energy systems or similar domains.
• Proficient in programming language (e.g., Python) with production-level software engineering experience.
• Strong understanding of electricity markets, DERs, and VPP operation.
• Familiarity with optimization frameworks (e.g., Pyomo, AMPL) and solvers (e.g., Gurobi, CPLEX).
• Experience with CI/CD, Docker, version control, and observability practices.
• Ability to reason about trade-offs between model fidelity, performance, and business value.

Bonus points

• Experience working with flexible energy assets (e.g., batteries, HVAC, EVs).
• Exposure to real-time systems or critical infrastructure software.
• Familiarity with cloud environments (e.g., AWS, GCP, Azure) and scalable deployment strategies.
• Prior work in a customer-facing technical role.

Why Join Uplight in Leading the Fight Against Climate Change?

At Uplight, we're not just offering a job – we're offering a chance to be part of the solution to one of the world's biggest challenges. As a certified B Corporation, we're deeply committed to both social and environmental responsibility. Here's why you should join our team of passionate Uplighters:

• Make a Meaningful Impact: Your work directly impacts our mission of decarbonization and building a more sustainable future.
• Grow Your Career: We offer ample advancement opportunities, robust learning and development programs, and a supportive team environment that fosters collaboration and innovation.
• Thrive: We offer comprehensive benefits, including flexible time off, generous parental leave, a wellness stipend, and work flexibility to help you thrive both personally and professionally.
• Belong to an Inclusive Community: We celebrate diversity and foster an inclusive workplace where everyone feels respected, empowered, and heard. Our Employee Resource Groups offer opportunities to connect with colleagues who share your interests and backgrounds.
• Be Part of a Growing Movement: Join a team of dedicated individuals who are passionate about creating a more sustainable future. We offer a collaborative environment where your ideas are valued and your contributions recognized. Together, we can build a brighter tomorrow.

To learn more about our comprehensive benefits package and other perks, visit uplight.com/careers

Salary Range: $150,000-190,000 USD + bonus

In accordance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, the approximate annual base compensation range is listed above. The actual offer, reflecting the total compensation package and benefits, will be determined by a number of factors including the applicant's experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity among our team.

Uplight provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race (including hair texture and hairstyles), color, religion (including head coverings), age, sex, national origin, disability status (including neurodivergence), genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, neurotypicality, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws