The opportunity timeline

• Overview

  HFF is hiring a AI Engineer in Kearney, NE.

• Role description

  HFF runs lean, deploys often, and now needs a mid-level AI Engineer who finds that combination exciting rather than terrifying. Sum it up however you want — freelance AI Engineer, $71,000 - $98,000, 3 years of Reinforcement Learning, and a stake in HFF that only deepens.

  Key Responsibilities

  • Keep the Reinforcement Learning build pipeline green so Kearney deploys never wait on a red light
  • Push Attention Management changes safely behind flags so Kearney, NE rollbacks take seconds
  • Tune database queries and schemas for high-throughput HFF workloads
  • Architect fault-tolerant distributed systems leveraging LightGBM and Time Series Analysis
  • Keep HFF's RAG dependencies patched before the CVEs become incidents
  • Untangle the Reinforcement Learning dependency knots that have slowed Kearney releases for months
  • Refactor the technology module HFF has been afraid to touch
  • Build internal tooling that improves developer productivity and velocity

  What You'll Bring

  • Roughly 3+ years operating in a similar AI Engineer position
  • A Kearney network, or the hustle to build one from scratch
  • A flexible attitude and eagerness to learn new skills
  • Sharp organizational skills and an ability to juggle multiple workstreams

  Our Kearney, NE headquarters is home to a forever-learning group of builders, designers, and problem-solvers at HFF. We keep our process light so engineers can spend their energy on Time Series Analysis and Attention Management, not bureaucracy.

  Here is the deal: $71,000 - $98,000, a mentor who answers, benefits that hold up, and a flexible freelance schedule that fits real life.

  The freshness epoch just refreshed, marking this AI Engineer role live again.

  We review every application carefully, so don't wait to submit yours.

• Required skills

  • NumPy
  • Time Series Analysis
  • Airflow
  • Reinforcement Learning
  • Vector Databases
  • LightGBM
  • Tableau
  • RAG
  • Active Listening
  • Initiative
  • Attention Management

• Benefits & perks

  • Summer Fridays
  • Disability accommodations
  • Company-wide holiday shutdown
  • Paid Time Off
  • Severance package
  • Career coaching

• Apply before 2026-09-02

  Submit your application for this Freelance technology position.