Applied Scientist II, Foundation Model, Industrial Robotics Group

Job  |  Services LLC

Location:

USA, CA, Sunnyvale
Salary: $171,600 – $222,200 USD annually

Industrial Robotics Group is seeking exceptional talent to help develop the next generation of advanced robotics systems that will transform automation at Amazon's scale. We are building revolutionary robotic systems that combine innovative AI, sophisticated control systems, and advanced mechanical design to create adaptable automation solutions capable of working safely alongside humans in dynamic environments. This is a unique opportunity to shape the future of robotics and automation at unprecedented scale while working with world-class teams pushing the boundaries of robotic manipulation, locomotion, and human‑robot interaction.

We leverage advanced robotics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to solve complex operational challenges at unprecedented scale. Our fleet of robots operates across hundreds of facilities worldwide, working in sophisticated coordination to fulfill our mission of customer excellence.

• Leverage state‑of‑the‑art models for targeted tasks, environments, and robot embodiments through fine‑tuning and optimization.
• Execute rapid, rigorous experimentation with reproducible results and solid engineering practices, closing the gap between simulation and real environments.
• Build and run capability evaluations/benchmarks to clearly profile performance, generalization, and failure modes.
• Contribute to the data and training workflow: collection/curation, dataset quality/provenance, and repeatable training recipes.
• Write clean, maintainable, well‑commented, and documented code; contribute to training infrastructure; create tools for model evaluation and testing; and implement necessary APIs.
• Stay current with latest developments in foundation models and robotics, assist in literature reviews and research documentation, prepare technical reports and presentations, and contribute to research discussions and brainstorming sessions.
• Work closely with senior scientists, engineers, and leaders across multiple teams, participate in knowledge sharing, support integration efforts with robotics hardware teams, and help document best practices and methodologies.

• 2+ years of building models for business application experience.
• Knowledge of programming languages such as C/C++, Python, Java or Perl.
• PhD or Master’s + 4+ years building ML models/algorithms in applied settings.
• 2+ years hands‑on experience in deep learning with strength in at least one: computer vision, multimodal models, imitation learning / RL for robotics, or human‑robot interaction.
• Ability to design rigorous experiments, analyze results, and iterate quickly with reproducible baselines.
• Demonstrated technical contributions (e.g., publications, patents, open‑source, or impactful internal systems).

• Experience using Unix/Linux.
• Experience in professional software development.

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Los Angeles County applicants:
Job duties for this position include working safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhering to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicating effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and following all federal, state, and local laws and company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position.

These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and Amazon’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers.…