Arabic Linguist AI & TTS

About Unifonic

Unifonic is an AI-native customer experience platform focused on emerging markets, recognized as a Great Place to Work®. The company has over 25 years of conversational AI research and development, serving more than 5,000 enterprises across MENA. Unifonic pioneers sovereign, agentic AI through its Agentic Studio platform and values creativity, collaboration, and innovation from its employees.

The Engineering Team

The Engineering team at Unifonic is responsible for the design, development, and maintenance of the systems and technologies that power Unifonic’s solutions. This team collaborates with other departments to ensure that products and services meet customer needs. Unifonic encourages individuals passionate about technology and cutting-edge communication solutions to join the team.

Role Summary: Arabic Linguist – AI & TTS

Unifonic is seeking an Arabic Linguist to support the Text-to-Speech (TTS) team. This part-time role, based in Riyadh, Riyadh Province, involves linguistic analysis, Arabic dialect expertise, pronunciation and speech-quality evaluation, and various voice-related projects. The ideal candidate will possess strong expertise in Saudi Arabic dialects, with native or near-native proficiency in the Najdi dialect being highly preferred. This position offers an opportunity to contribute linguistic expertise to production projects and enhance the quality and naturalness of Arabic speech technology.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

• Conduct research on the phonological, morphological, and syntactic structures of Arabic, with a focus on Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and Saudi/Gulf dialects, particularly the Najdi dialect, providing linguistic guidance for integration into Sestek products.
• Serve as a linguistic point of contact for the R&D / AI team, translating linguistic requirements into clear, actionable input for engineers.
• Analyze and review pronunciation data, including grapheme-to-phoneme mappings, diacritization/tashkeel, and lexicons, for Arabic TTS and speech recognition systems.
• Evaluate TTS output quality, focusing on pronunciation accuracy, prosody, dialect authenticity, and naturalness, particularly for Saudi Arabic.
• Provide linguistic guidance and support for Arabic voice data collection and speech synthesis projects, including identifying and onboarding suitable voice talents as needed.
• Support the coordination and review of voice recording and editing processes to ensure linguistic accuracy and consistency.
• Support the onboarding and coordination of external Arabic language consultants when required, providing guidance on linguistic requirements.
• Review and provide linguistic feedback on data annotation activities and guidelines, ensuring appropriate quality standards for Arabic and Saudi dialect data.
• Collaborate closely with the Sestek TTS and AI Research teams, providing ongoing linguistic expertise throughout projects.

Required Character Traits

• Analytical Thinking and Problem-Solving: Ability to approach problems clearly, utilize data, and identify effective solutions.
• Ownership and Accountability: Demonstrates responsibility and ensures projects are completed.
• Communication: Clearly articulates ideas and actively listens to others across teams.
• Collaboration: Works effectively with others and supports team objectives.
• Adaptability and Learning: Adjusts to changes and continuously acquires new skills or tools.
• Mentorship and Knowledge Sharing: Supports the growth of others and shares expertise.
• Resilience: Maintains composure under pressure and addresses setbacks constructively.
• Quality and Attention to Detail: Executes work meticulously and strives for continuous improvement.
• Advocacy and Innovation: Promotes best practices, efficiency, and new ideas.