Senior Onboard ML Engineer: Vision & Foundation Models

Waymo LLC; Mountain View (CA); Remote; USD 204,000 - 259,000; Full time

Job summary

Waymo LLC is seeking an experienced Senior ML Engineer for onboard perception to advance the Waymo Driver's capabilities. You will architect and train large-scale perception models that ensure safety and compliance, and collaborate across teams to build robust data pipelines in a fast-paced environment.

The role requires 5+ years in autonomous systems, deep expertise in Python/C++, PyTorch or Jax, and hands-on experience with multimodal models and distillation.

Qualifications

• BS or MS in Computer Vision, Machine Learning, Robotics, or a related field.
• 5+ years of applied industry experience in autonomous vehicles, robotics, or complex ML systems.
• Fluency in Python or C++, with deep hands-on expertise in PyTorch or Jax for matrix manipulation and module implementation.
• Deep understanding and proven practical experience with model distillation frameworks and quantization techniques for real-time compute constraints.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience building, training, or deploying Multimodal Foundation Models or Vision-Language Models (VLMs).

Responsibilities

• Architect and train large-scale, onboard ML perception models that are instrumental to ensuring vehicle safety and regulatory compliance.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration to engineer robust, high-reliability training pipelines within a dynamic, rapid-delivery environment.
• Leverage deep computer vision expertise to design novel, custom architectures from first principles to solve complex perception challenges.
• Contribute to a vibrant and positive team culture where diverse skill sets and backgrounds are valued.

Skills

Python or C++

PyTorch or Jax

Model distillation

Multimodal Foundation Models

Vision-Language Models

Education

BS or MS in Computer Vision, ML, Robotics or related field

Job description

Waymo LLC is seeking an experienced Senior ML Engineer for onboard perception to advance the Waymo Driver's capabilities. You will architect and train large-scale perception models that ensure safety and compliance, and collaborate across teams to build robust data pipelines in a fast-paced environment.

The role requires 5+ years in autonomous systems, deep expertise in Python/C++, PyTorch or Jax, and hands-on experience with multimodal models and distillation.