Applied Scientist, Fauna

Amazon; Herndon, Northern (VA, KY); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) matching

Paid time off

Parental leave

Job summary

Amazon's Fauna Robotics seeks an Applied Scientist to advance robot navigation in indoor environments, tackling robust, safe movement amid dynamic obstacles. You will develop navigation systems spanning classical methods to learning-based approaches and foundation models.

You will collaborate across teams, mentor peers, and stay at the cutting edge of spatial reasoning to improve real-world autonomy and performance of our robotic platforms.

Qualifications

• PhD or Master's degree with 4+ years in CS/CE/ML or related field
• 1+ years building models for business applications
• Experience publishing in top-tier conferences/journals
• Programming in Java, C++, Python or related language
• Experience in algorithms, data structures, numerical optimization, data mining, parallel/distributed computing, HPC

Responsibilities

• Develop robust navigation systems for autonomous operation in complex indoor environments
• Build simulation-based and on-device evaluation frameworks with benchmarks
• Conduct sim-to-real transfer experiments and improve real-world navigation performance
• Collaborate with world model, manipulation, and other teams to integrate navigation
• Stay current with advances in robot navigation and spatial reasoning
• Mentor fellow scientists and engineers while contributing technically

Skills

Java

C++

Python

Algorithms

Data structures

Numerical optimization

Parallel and distributed computing

High-performance computing

Education

PhD

Master's degree + 4+ years CS/CE/ML

Job description

Job ID: 10535012 | Amazon.com Services LLC

We are seeking an Applied Scientist to focus on Robot Navigation. In this role, you'll research and develop advanced navigation systems that enable robots to move reliably and safely through complex, dynamic environments. You'll work across a broad spectrum of navigation approaches—from classical methods to learning-based techniques and foundation models to build robust solutions for autonomous robot navigation.

Key job responsibilities

• Develop and implement robust navigation systems that enable reliable autonomous operation in complex, dynamic indoor environments with static and dynamic obstacles
• Build simulation-based and on-device evaluation frameworks with comprehensive benchmarks and metrics for systematic comparison of navigation methods
• Conduct sim-to-real transfer experiments, analyzing performance gaps and developing techniques to ensure reliable real-world navigation performance
• Collaborate with world model, manipulation, and other teams to ensure seamless integration of navigation capabilities into the full robot system
• Stay current with the latest advances in robot navigation, spatial reasoning, and related fields, and apply relevant findings to improve system performance
• Mentor fellow scientists and engineers while maintaining strong individual technical contributions

About the team

Fauna Robotics, an Amazon company, is building capable, safe, and genuinely delightful robots for everyday life. Our goal is simple: make robots people actually want to live and interact with in everyday human spaces. We believe that future won’t arrive until building for robotics becomes far more accessible. Today, too much effort is spent reinventing the fundamentals. We’re changing that by developing tightly integrated hardware and software systems that make it faster, safer, and more intuitive to create real-world robotic products.

Basic Qualifications

• 1+ years of building models for business application experience
• PhD, or Master's degree and 4+ years of CS, CE, ML or related field experience
• Experience in patents or publications at top-tier peer-reviewed conferences or journals
• Experience programming in Java, C++, Python or related language
• Experience in any of the following areas: algorithms and data structures, parsing, numerical optimization, data mining, parallel and distributed computing, high-performance computing

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience using Unix/Linux
• Experience in professional software development

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include: work safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhere to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicate effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and follow all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, effectively manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and the Company’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

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