Principal Research Scientist – Machine Learning

Trading Interview; Greater London; On-site; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

World‑class datasets and compute

Conference and publication support

Job summary

IMC is hiring a Principal Research Scientist to define and accelerate our long‑term machine learning research agenda. This role suits an established academic researcher who wants to stay connected to frontier ML while applying it to a highly impactful environment.

You will collaborate with quantitative researchers, engineers and leadership to identify directions, evaluate developments, and translate advances into practical applications.

Qualifications

• PhD in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Physics or a related quantitative discipline.
• Outstanding academic credentials and a strong publication record in leading research venues.
• Current or recent experience in a faculty-equivalent academic or research leadership role such as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor, Group Leader, Principal Investigator, Senior Postdoctoral Researcher, or Senior Research Scientist.
• Deep expertise in modern machine learning and strong awareness of emerging research trends.
• Experience influencing research direction, mentoring researchers, or leading research initiatives.
• Strong programming skills and experience with modern machine learning frameworks.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to collaborate across disciplines.

Responsibilities

• Shape the long‑term machine learning research agenda within Systematic Equities.
• Identify and translate advances from frontier ML research into practical opportunities.
• Conduct original research and develop proof‑of‑concept solutions where appropriate.
• Advise and mentor quantitative researchers on methodology, experimentation and research direction.
• Help guide future investments in research tooling, infrastructure and compute capabilities.
• Represent IMC within the global machine learning community through conferences such as NeurIPS, ICML and ICLR.
• Contribute to publication efforts where appropriate and consistent with intellectual property considerations.

Skills

PhD in ML/related fields

Publications track

Academic leadership

Deep ML expertise

Mentoring researchers

Programming skills

Cross-disciplinary communication

Education

PhD in ML/CS/Stats/Math/Physics or related

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

scikit-learn

Job description

IMC is one of the world’s leading trading firms, combining quantitative research, technology and trading expertise to solve complex problems at scale.

As Machine Learning becomes increasingly important within our Systematic Equities business, we are investing in frontier research that can shape the next generation of models, infrastructure and research capabilities. With access to world‑class datasets, significant compute resources and a highly collaborative environment, IMC offers a unique opportunity to see cutting‑edge research translated into real‑world impact.

We are seeking a Principal Research Scientist to help define and accelerate our long-term machine learning research agenda. Prior finance experience is not required.

The Role

This role is designed for an established academic researcher or research scientist who wants to remain connected to the frontier of machine learning while applying their expertise in a highly impactful environment.

You will work alongside quantitative researchers, engineers and research leadership to identify emerging research directions, evaluate new developments in machine learning, and help translate promising academic advances into practical applications.

Rather than owning individual trading strategies, you will act as a scientific leader, mentor and advisor across the research organisation. You will also represent IMC externally through participation in leading conferences and engagement with the broader machine learning community.

Responsibilities

• Shape the long‑term machine learning research agenda within Systematic Equities.
• Identify and translate advances from frontier ML research into practical opportunities.
• Conduct original research and develop proof‑of‑concept solutions where appropriate.
• Advise and mentor quantitative researchers on methodology, experimentation and research direction.
• Help guide future investments in research tooling, infrastructure and compute capabilities.
• Represent IMC within the global machine learning community through conferences such as NeurIPS, ICML and ICLR.
• Contribute to publication efforts where appropriate and consistent with intellectual property considerations.

Skills & Experience

• PhD in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Physics or a related quantitative discipline.
• Outstanding academic credentials and a strong publication record in leading research venues.
• Current or recent experience in a faculty-equivalent academic or research leadership role such as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor, Group Leader, Principal Investigator, Senior Postdoctoral Researcher, or Senior Research Scientist.
• Deep expertise in modern machine learning and strong awareness of emerging research trends.
• Experience influencing research direction, mentoring researchers, or leading research initiatives.
• Strong programming skills and experience with modern machine learning frameworks.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to collaborate across disciplines.

What We Offer

• The opportunity to influence the future of machine learning at one of the world’s leading trading firms.
• Access to exceptional datasets, infrastructure and large‑scale compute resources.
• Continued engagement with the academic community through conferences, collaborations and publication opportunities.
• A collaborative environment where research can move rapidly from idea to impact.
• Competitive compensation that reflects both scientific excellence and commercial impact.

About Us

IMC is a global trading firm powered by a cutting‑edge research environment and a world‑class technology backbone. Since 1989, we’ve been a stabilizing force in financial markets, providing essential liquidity upon which market participants depend. Across our offices in the US, Europe, Asia Pacific, and India, our talented quant researchers, engineers, traders, and business operations professionals are united by our uniquely collaborative, high‑performance culture, and our commitment to giving back. From entering dynamic new markets to embracing disruptive technologies, and from developing an innovative research environment to diversifying our trading strategies, we dare to continuously innovate and collaborate to succeed.

For three decades IMC has provided liquidity to the financial markets globally. Specialised in algorithmic trading and advanced technology, we set the pace for the evolution of market making. Cutting‑edge…