Principal Scientist — Marine Acoustics

Sofar Ocean; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 137,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

Sofar Ocean, based in San Francisco, is seeking an expert in underwater acoustics to lead research and development for acoustic sensing platforms. The role includes developing techniques to detect and classify underwater objects, leading collaborative efforts with cross-functional teams, and conducting field experiments.

Candidates must have deep expertise in underwater acoustics, experience with acoustic sensing systems, and strong communication skills. A Ph.D. is preferred but equivalent experience is considered. The position involves hybrid working conditions where team members should be in the office 70% of the time.

Qualifications

• Deep expertise in underwater acoustics.
• Experience developing acoustic sensing systems or algorithms.
• Understanding of marine acoustic propagation and ambient noise.

Responsibilities

• Lead acoustics research and development strategy.
• Develop capabilities to detect and classify underwater objects.
• Collaborate with scientists and engineers.

Skills

Underwater acoustics expertise

Acoustic sensing systems

Statistical signal processing

Machine learning

Excellent communication skills

Education

Ph.D. in acoustics or related field

Job description

The Role:

Sofar designs, builds, and deploys ocean sensing networks at a global scale that provide unique observational knowledge of the ocean environment. We are expanding our sensing capabilities into underwater acoustics to detect, classify, and locate underwater objects, and to create an acoustic map of the marine environment. We are looking for a world expert in ocean acoustics to set the research and development vision for Sofar’s underwater acoustics platform.

Responsibilities:

• Lead Sofar’s acoustics research and development strategy, defining the scientific vision for an underwater acoustics platform that supports real-world marine applications
• Develop capabilities to detect, classify, and localize underwater objects using passive and/or active acoustic sensing methods
• Advance methods for creating acoustic maps of the marine environment, including characterization of ambient soundscapes, propagation conditions, and relevant oceanographic context
• Provide an acoustics-centric perspective on sensing system design, deployment strategy, data quality, and performance validation
• Collaborate with Sofar’s oceanic and sensing scientists, software engineers, and firmware teams to translate acoustic research into operational products
• Coordinate and conduct field experiments, data analyses, and simulation studies to evaluate acoustic system performance in real-world ocean conditions
• Bring deep expertise in marine acoustics to complement Sofar’s ocean science, sensing, and forecasting teams
• Help define product requirements, technical roadmaps, and research priorities for new underwater acoustic capabilities
• Represent Sofar externally with customers, research partners, government agencies, and the broader ocean acoustics community

Minimum Job Qualifications:

• Deep expertise in underwater acoustics
• Experience developing acoustic sensing systems or algorithms for detection, classification, localization, mapping, or environmental characterization
• Strong understanding of marine acoustic propagation, ambient noise, signal processing, and the practical constraints of ocean sensing
• Experience working with real-world acoustic datasets, field deployments, and/or operational sensing systems
• Experience applying statistical signal processing, machine learning, or modern AI methods to acoustic detection, classification, or environmental inference
• Excellent communication skills, and you excel working in a cross-functional team
• Experience translating scientific research into operational products or customer-facing capabilities
• Ph.D. in acoustics, ocean engineering, electrical engineering, applied physics, oceanography, or a related field, but we will consider highly qualified candidates of any education level with equivalent experience
• Strong reputation within the ocean acoustics community, with experience leading externally funded research programs or strategic technical partnerships
• Enthusiasm and experience in leveraging LLMs to magnify personal impact

Bonus Points:

• Familiarity with embedded sensing systems, firmware constraints, or edge processing for acoustic applications
• Familiarity with the constraints of autonomous ocean platforms, including limited power, bandwidth, onboard compute, sensor calibration, and long-duration deployments
• Comfort working in production codebases when necessary to personally deliver changes

Estimated Salary Range

• $137,000 - $185,000
• The range listed is what we reasonably expect to pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and may be modified in the future. Actual compensation packages are based on several factors that are unique to each candidate, including but not limited to skill set, experience, and equity package.

Hybrid Work

We are a hands‑on team building hardware and software that operates in the real world — so being together matters. We ask that most team members are in office at least 70% of the time, though some roles (like field technicians or hardware engineering) may require more. Fully remote roles are designated as such in the job posting.

Visa Sponsorship

We do sponsor visas and retain an immigration lawyer to support the process. While we can't guarantee sponsorship for every role or situation, if we make you an offer, we'll make every reasonable effort to make it work.

Sofar's Commitment to Climate Justice

We at Sofar Ocean acknowledge that careers in the marine sciences “... have traditionally been, and remain, non‑diverse work environments”, thereby limiting the entry and prosperity of underrepresented groups in the space. (Johri et al., 2021) Many of these same groups are disproportionately affected by climate change, and are often excluded from decision making that directly address their interests and needs.

We are committed to addressing these climate injustices and highly encourage people who identify as women, LGBTQ+, Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) to apply.