Applied Scientist / Applied Scientistess

Overview

The Spatial AI Lab is part of the Applied Sciences Group, a Microsoft research and development organization dedicated to creating next-generation human-computer interaction technologies. We leverage the latest advancements in AI and explore new hardware capabilities and device form factors. Our team consists of scientists and engineers with strong expertise in computer vision and multi-modal AI, focusing on spatial and embodied AI.

As a Scientist specializing in Multimodal Foundation Models & Robotics on our expanding team, you will conduct groundbreaking research at the intersection of large-scale generative modeling and embodied AI, particularly in the robotics sector. Your primary focus will be to build the core intelligence for a new generation of agents by training multimodal foundation models that empower them to perceive complex environments, reason about tasks, and act seamlessly across both physical and digital worlds. This role provides a unique opportunity for you to deepen your expertise in training embodied foundation models, deploying algorithms on robotic hardware and large-scale AI systems, while contributing to pioneering research through publications and collaborations with leading institutions like ETH Zurich.

At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more. We unite with a growth mindset, embracing innovation to empower others and collaborating to realize our shared goals. Every day, we build upon our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to foster a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement novel foundation models and algorithms for general-purpose embodied agents.
• Implement high-performance machine-learning pipelines and optimize data and learning stacks for scalability, efficiency, and performance.
• Optimize and deploy AI models on robotic hardware.
• Collaborate with Microsoft research and engineering teams to transition cutting-edge research into real-world impact.
• Drive the team’s rapid progress, measured by advancements in internal capabilities and impactful contributions to the scientific community.
• Collaborate with top academic partners, such as ETH Zurich, to advance pioneering research, with opportunities to co-author work in top-tier venues, present at workshops, and mentor students.

Qualifications

Preferred Qualifications:

• A PhD in Robotics, Machine Learning, or a related field, or 3+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Demonstrated coding, debugging, and engineering skills in programming languages such as Python or C++.
• Hands-on experience with modern deep learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow, Jax).
• Self-motivated team player, problem solver, eager to learn.
• Ability to present complex technical concepts to a diverse audience.

Other Requirements:

• Ability to meet Microsoft, customer, and/or government security screening requirements.
• Successful completion of the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Additional Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with foundation models, including hands-on training in topics such as LLMs, large vision-language models (VLMs), video generative models, and diffusion algorithms.
• Experience with large-scale machine learning compute systems.
• Hands-on training experience in robotic learning techniques, including reinforcement learning and classical control methods.
• Solid understanding of robot kinematics, dynamics, and sensors.
• Familiarity with control algorithms such as PID, model predictive control (MPC), and whole-body control.
• A track record of impact, demonstrated by first-author research publications at top-tier conferences or contributions to successful industry initiatives.

This position is open for a minimum of 5 days. Apply online using the form below. Only applications matching the job profile will be considered.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations, and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or reasonable accommodations due to a disability during the application process, please refer to our guidelines for requesting accommodations.