Research Engineer in AI-driven Social Simulations

SLU; Sweden; On-site; SEK 400,000 - 600,000; Full time

Job summary

SLU is seeking a Research Engineer to develop AI-driven social simulations at their Department of Ecology. This role involves building LLM-agent infrastructure and running extensive simulations on GPU clusters.

Candidates should possess strong programming skills, particularly in Python, and a relevant degree. The position is based in Sweden, with a focus on ecological research, requiring an interest in environmental policy. Early application is encouraged before 14 July 2026.

Qualifications

• A degree in computer science, engineering, physics, or applied mathematics.
• Strong programming skills, especially in Python.
• Experience with software engineering practices like version control.

Responsibilities

• Build the LLM-agent infrastructure.
• Maintain the multi-agent simulation framework.
• Run large-scale Monte Carlo simulations.
• Publish and co-author scientific publications.

Skills

Programming skills

Machine learning knowledge

Debugging complex systems

Experience with LLMs

High-performance computing

Interest in environmental policy

Education

Master's in computer science or related field

Tools

Python

GPU workflows

Job description

Research Engineer in AI-driven Social Simulations

Reference number SLU.ua.2026.2.5.1-1730

Department of Ecology

The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is one of Northern Europe largest academic hubs for ecological research and offers a dynamic and excellent research environment with modern infrastructure. The Department of Ecology has about 150 employees, of whom around 40 work at the Grimsö Research Station in Bergslagen. Together, the SLU Ecology Centre and Grimsö Research Station conduct research on sustainable agriculture and forestry, plant protection, nature conservation, and wildlife management, and provide scientific knowledge to inform Sweden and Europe’s environmental policies.

Can we foresee the outcomes of public policies, political choices and other decisions? We are finding out by developing serious games and running them using AI.

We are building large‑scale simulations of societal processes (environmental negotiations, nature conservation policies, and hybrid‑threat scenarios) in which every actor is an autonomous AI agent powered by Large Language Models (LLMs). These agents simulate real‑world stakeholders, from government ministers to interest groups, and interact through natural language in complex strategic settings. We then run thousands of iterations to map the distribution of outcomes.

This effort is part of a new research program Articulating Complexity (https://www.slu.se/articulating-complexity/) hosted at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and led by Guillaume Chapron (Docent). It is funded by grants from the Swedish Research Council (VR), the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research (Mistra), and the Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development (FORMAS).

Our goal is to build a novel methodology at the intersection of AI, ecology, political science, and complex system analysis that may change how policies are designed and stress‑tested and how governments prepare for crises. We are looking for an ambitious research engineer to join this effort.

Tasks and duties

You will be the person who makes the simulations actually run. Concretely, this means:

• Building the LLM‑agent infrastructure (from an existing working implementation). Each agent has a multi‑tier memory and an affect state that modifies both prompts and available actions, and a strategic reasoning layer that tracks reputation, commitments, and mental models of other agents.
• Extending and maintaining the multi‑agent simulation framework. A simulation runs dozens of concurrent LLM instances, communicating through structured message‑passing protocols. You will develop and maintain this framework, including the validation methodology.
• Running large‑scale Monte Carlo simulations at scale on GPU‑enabled HPC clusters (e.g. NAISS).
• Publishing and dissemination of the project results. You will co‑author scientific publications from the project. The research will produce papers at the intersection of computational social science, ecology, security studies, and AI.
• A degree in computer science, engineering, physics, applied mathematics, or a related quantitative field. A Master or engineering degree is sufficient; a PhD is welcome but not required.
• Strong programming skills, especially in Python, and sufficient understanding of machine learning/deep learning to work effectively with modern generative AI systems. Ability to assess and incorporate cutting‑edge generative AI developments into the project.
• Experience with software engineering practices such as version control, testing, documentation, modular design, and reproducible workflows.
• Ability to work independently, debug complex systems under time pressure, and take ownership of technical infrastructure.
• Experience with LLMs, including programmatic use through APIs and local deployment. The candidate should be able to select, configure, adapt, and critically evaluate LLMs for research applications.
• Experience with deep reinforcement learning, agent‑based modelling, or multi‑agent systems, including the design of simulation environments, interacting agents, decision rules, feedback mechanisms, and scenario‑based analyses.
• Experience with high‑performance computing: batch job submission, GPU workflows, and managing large‑scale computational experiments.
• Interest in the application domain: nature conservation, environmental policy, political science, geopolitics and security studies, complex adaptive systems. You do not need a formal background in these fields, but you should find them interesting.

Assessment criteria

Applications will be assessed on the following:

• Demonstrated technical ability. We care more about what you have built, than about what courses you have taken. A GitHub portfolio, a deployed system, a well‑documented side project, or a track record of solving hard AI problems will carry more weight than a list of credentials.
• Autonomy and resourcefulness. This is a small team doing frontier work, so the role requires someone who can diagnose problems independently, make pragmatic technical decisions, and keep complex systems running. If that excites rather than worries you, this is the right position.
• Collaborative disposition. You will work daily with questions from very different disciplines: ecology, political science, geopolitics. The ability to communicate technical constraints and possibilities to non‑technical collaborators is essential. Interpersonal skills will form an important part of the assessment.

Location

The position is based either at Grimsö or at Uppsala, with a possibility to be partly based at another academic Swedish institution with a core expertise in AI and machine learning.

Form of employment

Fixed‑term employment 12 months with the possibility of prolongation.

Scope

100%.

As agreed, as soon as possible after recruitment.

Application

Please submit your application before deadline 14 July 2026. You can submit your application by clicking the button below.

The application should include (1) a statement of interest and motivation for applying to this position (max 3 pages), (2) resume including a complete publication list if any, (3) copies of diplomas, (4) copy of a passport if the applicant is not a Swedish citizen, (5) a list of at least two reference persons and their contact information, and (6) any work the candidate believes is relevant for the position.

The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) has a key role in the development for sustainable life, based on science and education. Through our focus on the interaction between humans, animals and ecosystems and the responsible use of natural resources, we contribute to sustainable societal development and good living conditions on our planet. Our main campuses are located in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, however, the university also operates at research stations, experimental forests and teaching sites throughout Sweden. SLU has around 4,000 employees, 6,000 students and doctoral students and a turnover of over SEK 4.5 billion. We are investing in attractive environments on all of our campuses. We strive to provide a work environment characterised by inclusivity and gender equality, where different experiences generate conversations between people and pave the way for science, creativity and development. Therefore, we welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds and perspectives.