PhD Position Foundation Models for Automotive Imaging Radar

Delft University of Technology (TU Delft); Netherlands; On-site; EUR 36,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) invites applications for a PhD candidate in the Intelligent Vehicles group, Department of Cognitive Robotics. You will investigate foundation models for automotive imaging radar, learning general radar representations from largely unlabelled data to generalize across configurations and tasks.

The project combines methodological ML research with real automotive sensor data, with access to research vehicles and prototypes, and collaboration with Perciv.AI

Qualifications

• An MSc degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field.
• A strong academic record and solid background in machine learning and deep learning.
• Ability to develop, understand, and critically evaluate machine learning research software, preferably using Python and PyTorch.
• An interest in foundation models, self supervised learning, multimodal learning, and 3D perception.
• An affinity for translating methodological research into experiments with real automotive sensor data and vehicle demonstrators.
• The ability to work independently as well as collaborate effectively within a larger research team.
• Good written and spoken English.
• Experience with radar, signal processing, computer vision, autonomous driving, or sensor fusion is advantageous.

Skills

Machine learning

Deep learning

Python

PyTorch

Foundation models

Self-supervised learning

Multimodal learning

3D perception

Research software

Independent work

Education

MSc in Computer Science, AI, Robotics, Electrical Eng or related

Job description

Delft University of Technology (TU Delft)

Organisation/Company Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) Research Field Engineering » Computer engineering Engineering » Electrical engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 18 Oct 2026 - 21:59 (UTC) Country Netherlands Type of Contract Permanent Job Status Not Applicable Hours Per Week 38.0 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

Job description

Next generation automotive imaging radars provide increasingly rich 3D information, opening the door to more advanced scene understanding and perception tasks such as 3D object detection and free space estimation. However, current neural networks are typically developed for a specific radar configuration and task, and often generalize poorly to other sensors. At the same time, large scale radar datasets with high quality labels remain scarce.

In this PhD project, you will investigate foundation models for automotive imaging radar. The goal is to learn general radar representations from largely unlabelled data that can generalize across different radar configurations and be efficiently adapted to multiple downstream perception tasks with limited labelled data. An important research direction is the transfer of representations from vision and LiDAR based foundation models to radar, as well as the development of multimodal foundation models incorporating radar. A further challenge is how different radar representations and sensor configurations can be accommodated within a general foundation model framework, and to what extent a common model can generalize across them. Research directions may also include generative or predictive modeling of dynamic radar scenes.

The project combines methodological machine learning research with experiments on real automotive sensor data. You will have access to research vehicles and advanced radar prototypes for collecting and evaluating real world multimodal sensor data.

While the primary application domain is automotive, the developed methods should preferably be sufficiently general to also apply to other domains, such as autonomous vehicles operating in off-road settings.

You will join the Intelligent Vehicles group within the Department of Cognitive Robotics at TU Delft. The project will be carried out in collaboration with Perciv.AI, and will also involve NXP Semiconductors as an industrial partner. The research is part of the FIND project, funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO), which investigates foundation models for high tech industry applications.

Your results are expected to be published at leading international venues in machine learning, computer vision, robotics and radar, such as NeurIPS, CVPR, ICRA, IEEE IV and RadarConf. For your research, you will have access to extensive computing resources at TU Delft, ranging from personal workstations and shared GPU servers to the Delft AI Cluster and the DelftBlue supercomputer. Your supervisors will be Prof. Dariu Gavrila and Dr. Julian Kooij.

Job requirements

• An MSc degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field.
• A strong academic record and solid background in machine learning and deep learning.
• Ability to develop, understand, and critically evaluate machine learning research software, preferably using Python and PyTorch.
• An interest in foundation models, self supervised learning, multimodal learning, and 3D perception.
• An affinity for translating methodological research into experiments with real automotive sensor data and vehicle demonstrators.
• The ability to work independently as well as collaborate effectively within a larger research team.
• Good written and spoken English.
• Experience with radar, signal processing, computer vision, autonomous driving, or sensor fusion is advantageous.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

Working at TU Delft means contributing to solutions that really make a difference.

For over 180 years, we have been training engineers who make an impact worldwide in companies, government bodies, or as entrepreneurs. Our alumni turn knowledge into concrete solutions for the challenges of today and tomorrow.

These challenges are changing rapidly. That is why we focus on themes such as energy, climate, digitalisation, artificial intelligence (AI), and smart mobility every day. Our education and research are directly aligned with what society needs now and in the future.

At TU Delft, our people make the difference. With their knowledge and curiosity, our staff provide a high-quality education and conduct pioneering research that extends beyond the campus. You will have the opportunity to take the initiative, work with others, and grow as a professional.

Working at TU Delft means join an international community of professionals and students. Together, we create knowledge, innovations, and solutions that help move the world forward.

Faculty Mechanical Engineering

From chip to ship. From machine to human being. From idea to solution. Driven by a deep-rooted desire to understand our environment and discover its underlying mechanisms, research and education at the ME faculty focusses on fundamental understanding, design, production including application and product improvement, materials, processes and (mechanical) systems.

ME is a dynamic and innovative faculty with high-tech lab facilities and international reach. It’s a large faculty but also versatile, so we can often make unique connections by combining different disciplines. This is reflected in ME’s outstanding, state-of-the-art education, which trains students to become responsible and socially engaged engineers and scientists. We translate our knowledge and insights into solutions to societal issues, contributing to a sustainable society and to the development of prosperity and well-being. That is what unites us in pioneering research, inspiring education and (inter)national cooperation.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. Do you want to experience working at our faculty? These videos will introduce you to some of our researchers and their work.

Conditions of employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from €3204 - €4051 gross per month, from the first year to the fourth year based on a fulltime contract (38 hours), plus 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

Will you need to relocate to the Netherlands for this job? TU Delft is committed to make your move as smooth as possible! The HR unit, Coming to Delft Service , offers information on their website to help you prepare your relocation. In addition, Coming to Delft Service organises events to help you settle in the Netherlands, and expand your (social) network in Delft. A Dual Career Programme is available, to support your accompanying partner with their job search in the Netherlands.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements .

Additional information

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof. Dr. D.M. Gavrila at [e-mail] .