Senior Principal Researcher - AI Algorithm

Huawei Technologies Co.; Markham; Hybrid; CAD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Huawei Canada seeks a Senior Principal Researcher to lead the strategic research vision in AI agents, embodied AI, and reasoning-centric LLMs. You will mentor a multidisciplinary team and translate cutting-edge research into scalable AI systems in close collaboration with engineering and product teams.

Applicants should have a PhD with high-impact publications and a strong background in foundation models, reasoning systems, and large-scale ML.

Qualifications

• PhD in Computer Science or related field with focus on reasoning or AI.
• Proven track record of high-impact publications in top venues.
• Experience translating research into scalable AI systems.
• Leadership and collaboration across multidisciplinary teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the strategic research vision and roadmap for AI agents and LLMs.
• Lead and mentor a multidisciplinary research team with strong scientific standards.
• Translate research into production-ready AI systems in partnership with eng and product teams.
• Advance state-of-the-art methods and set internal best practices.
• Incubate new research directions with academic and industry engagement.
• Allocate research resources to maximize long-term impact.
• Represent the organization through publications and talks.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring

Strategic planning

Publications

Collaboration

Education

PhD in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Neural network frameworks

Job description

Huawei Canada has an immediate permanent opening for a Senior Principal Researcher.

About the team:

Founded in 2012, the Noah’s Ark lab has evolved into a prominent research organization with notable achievements in academia and industry. The lab’s mission focuses on advancing artificial intelligence and related fields to benefit the company and society. Driven by impactful, long-term projects, the aim is to enhance state-of-the-art research while integrating innovations into the company's products and services, including LLMs, RL, NLP, computer vision, AI theory, and Autonomous driving.

About the job:

• Define and drive the strategic research vision and technical roadmap across AI agents, embodied AI, and reasoning-centric large language models.
• Lead and mentor a high-caliber, multidisciplinary research team, fostering a culture of scientific excellence, creativity, and rapid iteration.
• Translate cutting-edge research into scalable, production-ready AI systems in close collaboration with engineering and product teams.
• Stay at the forefront of the field by advancing state-of-the-art methods, conducting original research, and setting internal best practices.
• Identify and incubate emerging research directions, leveraging deep engagement with leading academic institutions and industry labs.
• Oversee and optimize research investment, infrastructure, and resource allocation to maximize long-term impact.
• Represent the organization as a thought leader, through publications, keynote talks, and contributions to the global AI community.

About the ideal candidate:

• PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, or a related field, with a focus on reasoning, decision-making, or equivalent groundbreaking industry contributions.
• Proven track record of high-impact publications in top-tier venues (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, ACL).
• Deep expertise in foundation models, reasoning systems, and decision-making frameworks, with a strong grasp of both theoretical and applied advances.
• Demonstrated ability to translate research ideas into working prototypes and scalable systems with speed and rigor.
• Experience working with or collaborating alongside leading AI research labs or technology organizations.
• Strong background in large-scale machine learning systems, particularly in domains such as planning, reasoning, robotics, embodied AI, or multi-agent systems.
• Exceptional leadership and communication skills, with the ability to inspire teams and influence technical direction at the highest level.

Additional Information:

Huawei Canada is committed to a fair, inclusive, and accessible recruitment process. If you require accommodation during any stage of the hiring process, please let us know and we will work with you to meet your needs.

All applications for this position are reviewed directly by our hiring team, we do not use artificial intelligence tools to screen or select candidates.