Research Scientist, AI Foundations — VLMs & 3D Vision

Waymo; New York (NY); On-site; USD 213,000 - 263,000; Full time

Job summary

Waymo is seeking a research-focused professional to advance world understanding using large-scale visual-language models, 3D reconstruction, and generative modeling. You will prototype ideas with Waymo's driving data and collaborate with engineering teams to scale solutions.

The role requires a strong foundation in ML, CV, and 3D methods, plus 1–3+ years of experience and advanced degrees. Remote-friendly with competitive compensation and benefits.

Qualifications

• Master's or PhD in Computer Science, AI, ML, or a related field.
• 1–3+ years of related experience.
• Expert in foundational VLMs, CV, or 3D reconstruction methods.

Responsibilities

• Solve fundamental and applied research problems related to world understanding using VLMs, generative modeling and 3D reconstruction at large scale.
• Prototype and iterate on research ideas using Waymo's internal driving data.
• Scale and productionize world understanding solutions in collaboration with engineering teams across Waymo.
• Present research findings to a wide audience within Waymo and Alphabet, with potential for publishing results.

Skills

Machine Learning

Python

C++

VLMs

Frameworks: TensorFlow, PyTorch, JAX

Education

Master's or PhD in Computer Science/AI/ML

Tools

PyTorch

TensorFlow

JAX

Job description

Waymo is seeking a research-focused professional to advance world understanding using large-scale visual-language models, 3D reconstruction, and generative modeling. You will prototype ideas with Waymo's driving data and collaborate with engineering teams to scale solutions.

The role requires a strong foundation in ML, CV, and 3D methods, plus 1–3+ years of experience and advanced degrees. Remote-friendly with competitive compensation and benefits.