Applied Research Scientist

Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute; Edmonton; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Professional development

Competitive compensation

Downtown Edmonton office

Amii community access

Job summary

Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii) is seeking an Applied Research Scientist to advance the safety of autonomous AI systems. You will lead research to evaluate risks, develop evaluation tools, and translate findings into practical safety solutions.

The role reports to the Director of AI Trust and Safety and emphasizes collaboration with researchers and industry partners to push the science of agentic AI safety forward.

Qualifications

• PhD in ML/AI or related field; strong research outputs.
• Post-PhD experience in applied or industry ML research welcomed.
• Demonstrated safety-focused AI research and publications.

Responsibilities

• Develops and communicates a clear vision for TS research in Amii.
• Proposes, develops and executes Trust & Safety research proposals.
• Develops experiments, evaluation pipelines and environments with Eng team.

Skills

AI Safety

Agentic AI

Research Leadership

Evaluation Methodologies

Communication

Education

Ph.D. in Machine Learning / AI / CS

Master's with industry experience

Tools

PyTorch

TensorFlow

JAX

Python

Job description

\"This role offers a unique opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge AI research
in Trust and Safety, with a particular focus on understanding and evaluating the
risks of autonomous AI systems. You'll collaborate with researchers and
practitioners to advance the science of AI safety and translate research into
practical tools and approaches that support safer AI development and adoption.
There is so much meaningful work ahead, and we're eager to build it together.\"

- Alyssa Lefaivre Škopac | Director, AI Trust and Safety

About Amii

One of Canada's three main institutes for artificial intelligence (AI) and
machine learning, our world-renowned researchers drive fundamental and applied
research at the University of Alberta (and other academic institutions),
training some of the world's top scientific talent. Amii is a core partner in
the Canadian AI Safety Institute (CAISI). Our cross-functional teams work
collaboratively with Alberta-based businesses and organizations to build AI
capacity and translate scientific advancement into industry adoption and
economic impact.

About the Role

The Applied Research Scientist will advance the understanding and safety of
increasingly autonomous AI systems through research on agentic AI. The role will
investigate key safety challenges, develop rigorous evaluation methods, and
explore approaches to improving system reliability, robustness, and oversight.

Reporting to the Director of AI Trust and Safety, the Applied Research Scientist
will lead research to understand, evaluate, and mitigate risks associated with
agentic AI systems.

As AI systems evolve from responding to individual prompts to independently
planning, making decisions, using tools, and executing complex tasks, new safety
challenges are emerging. This role will advance scientific understanding of
their challenges and develop practical approaches to addressing them.

Research will build on Amii's strengths, address critical gaps in the AI safety
landscape, and be informed by national and international research priorities.
Outputs will include academic papers, whitepapers, conference presentations,
open-source tools, and evaluation methodologies.

The position focuses on achieving excellence in three main accountabilities:

• Trust & Safety AI Research Projects


• Strategy & Applied Expertise


• Project Execution

Potential research focus areas may include:

• Agentic AI safety evaluations: Developing rigorous methodologies, benchmarks,
  and testing environments to assess the capabilities, risks, robustness, and
  reliability of increasingly autonomous AI systems, including their behaviour
  across complex tasks and environments.


• Goal misgeneralization and unintended behaviours: Investigating how agentic
  systems interpret and pursue objectives, including failures where behaviours
  diverge from intended goals, instructions, or constraints.


• Oversight, monitoring, and control: Exploring approaches to evaluating and
  improving human oversight, monitoring, intervention, and control of
  autonomous AI systems.


• Emerging agentic safety risks: Investigating novel safety challenges
  associated with agentic AI, including failures arising from tool use,
  long-horizon tasks, interactions with external environments, and increasingly
  complex agent architectures.

These focus areas are intended to guide, rather than limit, the research agenda.
We welcome candidates who bring new perspectives, methodologies, and research
questions that could meaningfully advance the science of agentic AI safety.

Required Skills / ExpertiseKey Responsibilities:

• Develops and communicates a clear vision for how research projects contribute
  to the goals of the T&S program at Amii, which may include applied industry
  projects


• Proposes, develops and executes Trust & Safety research proposals, defining
  objectives, scope, methodologies, evaluation approaches, and resource needs,
  with a particular focus on agentic AI safety.


• Develops and implements research experiments, evaluation pipelines, and
  environments, working with engineering colleagues where appropriate


• Identifies opportunities throughout the research process to translate
  findings into practical evaluation tools, methodologies, frameworks, and
  applications


• Authors and publishes peer-reviewed papers, whitepapers, and other scientific
  outputs


• Evaluates results and emerging insights to refine research plans and
  determine whether to continue, pivot, or discontinue projects based on
  research findings, new insights, technologies, or shifts in industry trends


• Represents the organization at conferences, workshops, and industry events,
  sharing knowledge and building a reputation as a thought leader in AI T&S


• Mentors junior team members, providing technical guidance and strategic
  advice on T&S projects


• Collaborates with cross-functional teams, coordinates project timelines, and
  resolves challenges to ensure project success


• Supports collaborations with Canadian and international research institutions
  to expand the scope and impact of T&S research


• Leads and/or supports applications for additional funding, including grant
  proposals, research applications etc.


• Supports with reporting requirements and generating insights on our trust and
  safety impact for key funding and government bodies

Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, or a
  related field
  
  
  
  • Candidates with a Master's degree and extensive industry experience may
    also be considered
  
  
  
  


• 2+ years of post-PhD research experience developing, training and evaluating
  machine learning systems in an applied or industry setting, including
  demonstrated research outputs (e.g. peer-reviewed publications, open-source
  tools, benchmarks etc.)


• Demonstrated research experience or substantial technical exposure in AI
  safety, including familiarity with emerging safety risks, evaluation
  methodologies, and research priorities


• Strong knowledge of modern AI and machine learning, with particular
  familiarity with agentic AI systems, including LLM-based agents, tool use,
  autonomous decision-making, or related architectures


• Experience leading research projects from question to publication or
  deployment, including contributions to peer-reviewed ML/AI conferences,
  journals, or other recognized scientific outputs


• Experience developing, implementing, and evaluating ML models or AI systems,
  particularly in industry or applied settings


• Proficiency in Python and ML frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX), and
  familiarity with AI experimentation and evaluation tooling, including model
  APIs, open-source models, agent frameworks, experiment tracking, and
  computational infrastructure


• Ability to clearly communicate complex technical concepts and research
  findings to both technical and non-technical audiences

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Demonstrates presence, self-confidence, sound judgment, and superior
  problem-solving ability


• Thrives in ambiguity, bringing intellectual curiosity and scientific rigour
  to emerging research areas where the questions, methods, and best practices
  are still taking shape.


• Strong interpersonal communication skills for effective interactions with
  internal departments and external stakeholders


• A motivated leader who demonstrates individual drive and an uncompromising
  desire to achieve exceptional results


• Demonstrated ability to work independently, exercise sound scientific
  judgment, and navigate emerging research areas where methodologies are still
  evolving.


• Promotes high-level cross-functional collaboration and establishes
  credibility while influencing peers to achieve common goals


• Demonstrates professional maturity, resourcefulness and self-discipline in
  engaging in the pursuit of the organization's goals


• Active participation in the research community: publishing research, serving
  as research reviewers, supporting Amii students, speaking or teaching within
  their area of expertise

What you'll love about us

• A professional yet casual work environment that encourages the growth and
  dvelopment of your skills


• Participate in professional development activities


• Gain access to the Amii community and events


• A chance to learn from amazing teammates who support one another to succeed


• Competitive compensation, including paid time off and flexible health
  benefits


• A modern office located in downtown Edmonton, Alberta

Applicants must be legally eligible to work in Canada at the time of application.

Amii is an equal opportunity employer and values a diverse workforce. We
encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to
ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age or disability.
Accommodations for disability-related needs throughout the recruitment and
selection process are available upon request. Any information provided by you
for accommodations will be kept confidential and won't be used in the selection
process.