Staff Scientist – Agents for Science

Argonne National Laboratory; Lemont (IL); Hybrid; USD 94,486 - 147,398; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

Flexible work arrangements

Job summary

Argonne National Laboratory is seeking a Staff Scientist – Agents for Science to innovate AI systems that support scientific discovery. The role involves developing AI systems that can reason and plan, as well as enhancing workflows across disciplines. A collaborative environment awaits you, working with experts in AI and computation.

The position is hybrid, allowing for remote work, with a salary range of $94,486 - $147,398.94 depending on qualifications.

Qualifications

• PhD preferred, or relevant work experience.
• Experience designing and evaluating complex AI systems.
• Good communication skills in verbal and written form.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop agentic AI systems for scientific discovery.
• Develop agents for scientific workflows and data pipelines.
• Evaluate agent performance in various scientific environments.

Skills

Programming skills in Python, C, or C++

Reinforcement learning experience

Knowledge in AI frameworks (PyTorch, JAX)

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher in relevant fields

Tools

AI frameworks (PyTorch, JAX)

Job description

Staff Scientist – Agents for Science

The Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF) is seeking a Staff Scientist – Agents for Science to pioneer AI systems that can reason, plan, act, and collaborate in support of scientific discovery. AI for science is entering a new phase. Beyond models that analyze data or make predictions, there is growing opportunity to develop agentic AI systems that can interact with scientific data, simulations, instruments, workflows, and knowledge sources in more adaptive and autonomous ways. At ALCF, we are exploring how such systems can help scientists formulate hypotheses, design experiments, navigate complex data, coordinate computational workflows, and accelerate discovery across disciplines. This role is an opportunity to work at the frontier of agentic AI, foundation models, scientific workflows, and high‑performance computing, and contribute to the Department of Energy’s Genesis mission.

You will join the AI group—a highly collaborative, multidisciplinary environment—and work alongside experts in AI, simulation, computer science, applied mathematics, and domain science.

Responsibilities

• Designing and developing agentic AI systems for scientific discovery, including systems that can reason, plan, retrieve information, invoke tools, and execute multi-step scientific tasks.
• Developing agents that can interact with simulation workflows, data pipelines, scientific software, instruments, knowledge bases, and computational tools.
• Building methods for tool use, workflow orchestration, memory, planning, adaptation, and decision‑making in scientific environments.
• Evaluating agent performance in terms of scientific usefulness, reliability, robustness, efficiency, and safety.
• Conducting research and development aligned with Argonne’s strategic mission in computation, AI, and scientific discovery.
• Contributing to a team culture that values scientific excellence, collaboration, innovation, and inclusive professional growth.

Required Qualifications

• RD2: Bachelor’s degree and 5+ years of experience, or Master’s degree and 3+ years of experience, or PhD and 0+ years of experience, or equivalent educational background.
• Educational background in computer science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, computational science, applied mathematics, or a related field.
• PhD preferred.
• Experience with reinforcement learning, planning, or sequential decision‑making.
• Strong programming skills in one or more languages such as Python, C, or C++.
• Experience with one or more AI frameworks such as PyTorch, JAX, or related tools.
• Experience designing, implementing, and evaluating complex AI systems.
• Good communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Ability to model Argonne’s core values of impact, safety, respect, integrity, and teamwork.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with LLM‑based systems, retrieval‑augmented generation, tool calling, or workflow agents.
• Experience integrating AI systems with scientific software, simulations, databases, or experimental workflows.
• Experience with distributed training, inference systems, or HPC environments.

Position Requirements

Hybrid Remote Work – Mostly Onsite: employees regularly scheduled for some onsite and some remote days, typically working up to 40% of their time remotely.

The expected hiring range for this position is $94,486.00 - $147,398.94. The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as, but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the qualifications of the selected candidate, business considerations, internal equity, and external market pay for comparable jobs. Additionally, comprehensive benefits are part of the total rewards package.

Equal Employment Opportunity

As an equal employment opportunity employer, and in accordance with our core values of impact, safety, respect, integrity and teamwork, Argonne National Laboratory is committed to a safe and welcoming workplace that fosters collaborative scientific discovery and innovation. Argonne encourages everyone to apply for employment. Argonne is committed to nondiscrimination and considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to any characteristic protected by law.

All Argonne offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes an assessment of criminal conviction history conducted on an individualized and case‑by‑case basis. In some cases, a government access authorization may be required. Failure to obtain or maintain such authorization could result in the withdrawal of a job offer or future termination of employment.