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Code Guide

AI Safety & Eval Engineer

Growing

Ensure AI systems behave safely and reliably: build eval pipelines, red-team models, implement guardrails.

Who moves into this role

  • ML engineer
  • Security engineer
  • Research engineer

Required skills

Evaluation framework design
Red-teaming & adversarial testing
Risk reporting & governance

Salary benchmarks (2026)

US market · ±30% · Base only. Europe runs 30–50% lower.

Entry $140K–$180K
Mid-level $180K–$250K
Senior $250K–$400K

Lab compensation highest

Frequently asked questions

What does a AI Safety & Eval Engineer do?

Ensure AI systems behave safely and reliably: build eval pipelines, red-team models, implement guardrails.

What skills does a AI Safety & Eval Engineer need?

The core skills are: Evaluation framework design, Red-teaming & adversarial testing, Risk reporting & governance.

What is the salary for a AI Safety & Eval Engineer in 2026?

In 2026, a AI Safety & Eval Engineer earns between $140K–$180K at entry level and $250K–$400K at senior level, with mid-level salaries around $180K–$250K. Lab compensation highest. US market figures, ±30%.