Pavement Condition Index (PCI) Survey & Annotation Specialist – Freelance AI Trainer Project

About the Role

Advanced AI systems are being developed to understand roadway conditions, interpret inspection imagery, and support infrastructure maintenance planning. This freelance project seeks pavement professionals or roadway inspectors with hands-on experience conducting or interpreting Pavement Condition Index (PCI) surveys to help train and evaluate AI models by providing high-quality, PCI-based training data and annotations.

Responsibilities

• Review roadway images, inspection records, and AI-generated outputs to assess accuracy and consistency with PCI methodology.
• Annotate or validate pavement features and distress patterns (cracking, rutting, spalling, patching, weathering, etc.) for model training.
• Validate AI-generated classifications of pavement distress and severity levels, and provide written feedback where models misidentify features or misinterpret severity.
• Explain how inspectors distinguish between similar distress categories and how sampling units and field conditions influence PCI scoring.
• Analyze roadway imagery or survey excerpts and apply PCI inspection reasoning consistently.

Qualifications

• Pavement engineer, civil/transportation engineer, DOT specialist, highway inspector, or similar professional with experience conducting or reviewing PCI surveys or pavement condition assessments.
• Experience working with inspection imagery, condition reports, or roadway maintenance planning is highly valuable.
• Familiarity with PCI methodology, pavement distress types, and condition rating practices.
• Clear written communication and ability to explain inspection reasoning and classification decisions in a structured way.
• No prior AI or technical background required; training and project guidelines will be provided.

Benefits

• Freelance / contract engagement with pay range of $6 - $20 per hour (exact rate determined after evaluating experience, expertise, and geographic location).
• Training and project guidelines provided.

Additional Information

• As a contractor, you must supply a secure computer and high-speed internet.
• Company-sponsored benefits such as health insurance and PTO do not apply.
• Employment type: Freelance / Contract. Workplace type: Remote.