GenAI Research Scientist (Staff)

Visa; Foster City (CA); On-site; USD 169,000 - 271,000; Full time

Job summary

Visa is seeking a research-focused professional to lead Generative AI initiatives and long-term GenAI research in large-scale ML. You’ll develop prototypes and collaborate with engineers, product teams, and government partners to impact payments technology globally.

Applicants should have a PhD with strong publications and experience in generative models. The role requires 3+ days in office, travel 5-10%, and potential equity/bonus where applicable.

Qualifications

• PhD in Computer Science, Operations Research, Statistics, or highly quantitative field with strength in Deep Learning, Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Statistical or other mathematical analysis
• Extensive experience in machine learning, deep learning, and generative models
• Strong publication record in top-tier conferences and journals

Responsibilities

• Conduct research in Generative AI, with focus areas including agentic coding, agentic commerce, AI agents, large language models, reasoning, planning, and retrieval-augmented generation.
• Design and explore innovative AI model architectures, algorithms, and agentic workflows to improve reasoning, autonomy, reliability, efficiency, and task performance.
• Develop prototypes and proof-of-concepts that translate research ideas into practical AI capabilities for developer productivity, commerce experiences, and intelligent workflow automation.
• Review academic literature and emerging industry work to identify relevant methods, tools, benchmarks, and research opportunities in GenAI and agentic systems.
• Collaborate with senior researchers, engineers, and product teams to advance research projects from early exploration toward scalable product or platform opportunities.
• Contribute to technical documentation, research reports, publications, and patents, clearly communicating methods, results, limitations, and recommendations.

Skills

Python

Deep learning

Generative AI

Research collaboration

Education

PhD in Computer Science, Operations Research, Statistics, or highly quantitative field

Job description

Visa is seeking a research-focused professional to lead Generative AI initiatives and long-term GenAI research in large-scale ML. You’ll develop prototypes and collaborate with engineers, product teams, and government partners to impact payments technology globally.

Applicants should have a PhD with strong publications and experience in generative models. The role requires 3+ days in office, travel 5-10%, and potential equity/bonus where applicable.