Postdoctoral Fellow - TMI, Agentic AI, Texas Materials Institute, CockrellSchool of Engineering

Postdoctoral Fellow – TMI, Agentic AI, Texas Materials Institute, Cockrell School of Engineering Hiring Department: Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering Position Open To: All Applicants Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40 FLSA Status: Exempt Earliest Start Date: Immediately Position Duration: Expected to Continue Until Aug 31, 2027 Location: UT MAIN CAMPUS Purpose The Postdoctoral Fellow will lead research in agentic AI and autonomous laboratory systems as part of the advanced materials characterization and discovery initiatives within the Texas Materials Institute (TMI) at The University of Texas at Austin. This position is centered on developing AI agents and agentic orchestration frameworks capable of observing, reasoning, planning, and acting across multiple classes of scientific instruments, enabling a fully integrated closed-loop “self-driving laboratory”. The role focuses on providing the AI core and foundational intelligence that coordinates the entire experimental ecosystem. The Postdoctoral Fellow will develop agentic AI models and frameworks for intelligent experimental workflows, which couple machine learning, real‑time data analysis, and tool‑use APIs to automate complex decision‑making across materials design, liquid‑phase synthesis, and characterization platforms. Responsibilities include building agentic AI systems that can interpret multimodal data streams, interface with instrument control systems, and autonomously execute experimental tasks with minimal human intervention. The Postdoctoral Fellow will be responsible for both developing and deploying agentic AI systems in real laboratory environments, ensuring robust performance under real‑world noise, uncertainty, and instrument variability. Responsibilities Develop agentic AI models and agentic orchestration frameworks for multi‑step, multi‑instrument experimental workflows (e.g., observe‑reason‑plan‑act). Design closed‑loop optimization and active learning strategies for real‑time experiment steering and adaptive decision‑making. Integrate agentic AI systems with instrument control APIs, laboratory scheduling systems, and data acquisition interfaces, enabling autonomous operation across diverse scientific instruments. Build and refine digital twins for synthesis and characterization workflows, using physics‑based simulations and/or surrogate ML models. Collaborate closely with experimentalists, theorists, and engineers across academic and industrial partners. Work with postdoctoral fellows in liquid‑phase synthesis, microdroplet printing, and characterization. Publish high‑impact research, present findings at international conferences, and contribute to proposal development for new initiatives in agentic AI and autonomous laboratory systems. Mentor graduate students and research staff, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration between materials science, data science, and robotics. Collaborate with the Texas Materials Institute’s instrumentation and AI engineering teams to help define the architecture for next‑generation autonomous materials research laboratories at UT Austin. Perform other related duties as assigned. Required Qualifications Ph.D. in Materials Science, Computer Science, Engineering, Applied Physics, or a closely related field, conferred within three (3) years before the start date of the appointment. Strong proficiency in Python and modern ML and agentic AI frameworks. Experience with control, optimization, or reinforcement learning, OR workflow automation / multi‑agent systems. Demonstrated experience conducting independent research in a relevant area of materials science or engineering. Strong publication record in peer‑reviewed journals/conferences. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Ability to work collaboratively in an interdisciplinary research environment. Comfort working with real‑world experimental environments, including handling uncertainty, noise, and incomplete data. Commitment to mentoring and contributing to the academic development of graduate and undergraduate students. Salary $61,093 Working Conditions May work around standard office conditions. Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation. Use of manual dexterity. Benefits Competitive health benefits (employee premiums covered at 100%, family premiums at 50%). Voluntary Vision, Dental, Life, and Disability insurance options. Generous paid vacation, sick time, and holidays. Teachers Retirement System of Texas, a defined benefit retirement plan, with 7.75% employer matching funds. Additional Voluntary Retirement Programs: Tax Sheltered Annuity 403(b) and a Deferred Compensation program 457(b). Flexible spending account options for medical and childcare expenses. Robust free training access through LinkedIn Learning plus professional conference opportunities. Tuition assistance. Expansive employee discount program including athletic tickets. Free access to UT Austin’s libraries and museums with staff ID card. Free rides on all UT Shuttle and Austin CapMetro buses with staff ID card. Employment Eligibility Please make sure you meet all the required qualifications and you can perform all of the essential functions with or without a reasonable accommodation. Background Checks A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position. Equal Opportunity Employer The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions. E‑Verify The University of Texas at Austin uses E‑Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E‑Verify is 854197. For more information about E‑Verify, please see the following: E‑Verify Poster (English and Spanish) [PDF] Right to Work Poster (English) [PDF] Right to Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF] #J-18808-Ljbffr University of Texas at Austin