Principal Research Scientist - Autonomous Systems

Principal Research Scientist – Autonomous Systems

Peraton Labs is seeking a self‑motivated Principal Research Scientist with a passion for developing solutions for problems in the field of autonomous systems across a variety of domains. You will lead or work with a team of research scientists to design, prototype, test, and demonstrate solutions to challenging research problems. Your work will involve defining research programs, developing innovative concepts and approaches to solving different problems in autonomous systems, and providing direction and vision for the team.

An important aspect of this position is the ability to clearly articulate research directions that will solve a broad range of customer problems by providing cutting‑edge solutions.

Peraton Labs performs basic, applied, and advanced research for a variety of customers. Your role will involve interacting with customers to understand their needs, pitching new ideas and presenting research results to new and existing customers, developing proposals that address customer needs, and providing leadership for executing research programs. The ideal candidate will therefore have substantial experience in the above tasks, along with the ability to delve deep into the relevant technologies and provide leadership in developing and delivering prototype solutions.

Your strong software development skills and willingness to learn new skills and technologies as needed to develop cutting‑edge solutions based on customer needs will be essential.

We have several active research and development projects where we design, integrate, and demonstrate solutions for a range of AI applications, including AI‑enabled cybersecurity, adversarial machine learning, large language models, cyber and networking models, reinforcement learning, social media disinformation and influence campaigns, and more. A strong candidate will have expertise in many or all of these areas, or the ability to quickly come up to speed.

The ideal candidate is one who is excited at the opportunity to work on cutting‑edge research in an environment where they will continuously learn new concepts and innovate in collaboration with a strong team of individuals with diverse technical backgrounds.

Requirements:

• Minimum of 7 years of experience with a PhD in Computer Science or related area
• Strong research background and development experience in AI, cybersecurity, and autonomous systems
• Hands‑on experience with relevant AI technologies, models, and tools, including state‑of‑the‑art modeling techniques such as transformers, feature engineering, and development of deep neural networks with modern tools such as PyTorch or Tensor Flow
• Strong communication and presentation skills
• Ability and desire to quickly acquire knowledge of new subject matter areas
• Experience in business development and writing winning proposals for R&D opportunities with DoD/IC/other Government customers, such as DARPA, IARPA, ARL, AFRL, etc. is a plus
• Experience in leading DARPA or similar projects as Principal Investigator is a plus
• US Citizenship with the ability to obtain/maintain a Secret or higher clearance is required

$146,000 - $234,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual’s experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

Equal opportunity employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.