Senior AI Scientist - Planning

Who We Are & Why Join UsAvathon is the leading Industrial AI autonomy platform, helping customers across heavy industries -- energy, mining, manufacturing, aerospace, defense, and logistics -- accelerate the journey toward autonomous operations. Our platform is built on a Computational Knowledge Graph foundation that contextualizes and connects operational data across siloed systems, bringing together time series, structured, unstructured, and machine vision data to power AI-driven applications in asset performance management, supply chain intelligence, visual AI, and global trade management. With capabilities spanning digital twins, normal behavior modeling, natural language processing, and computer vision, Avathon delivers real-time predictive intelligence and agentic decision-making at industrial scale.Cutting-Edge AI Innovation -- Join a team at the forefront of AI, developing groundbreaking solutions that shape the future. High-Growth Environment -- Thrive in a fast-scaling startup where agility, collaboration, and rapid professional growth are the norm. Meaningful Impact -- Work on AI-driven projects that drive real change across industries and improve lives.Learn more at: avathon.comAbout the RoleAs a Senior AI Scientist – Planning, you will design and develop the AI and optimization models that power Avathon's planning intelligence - demand forecasting, supply planning, inventory optimization, and S&OP decision support for customers across energy, mining, manufacturing, and logistics.This role sits at the intersection of AI, ML and operations research. You will build models that work with complex supply chain data - demand history, ERP/MRP transactions, and commercial forecasts across multi-echelon networks with long lead times and constrained capacity. The work is equal parts applied research and production delivery. You will develop novel approaches where standard methods fall short and ship them into a platform used by enterprise customers. You will report into the Data Science org and work closely with product and engineering.You WillBuild demand forecasting models across industrial verticals, applying probabilistic, hierarchical, and intermittent demand methods where history is short or volatileDesign supply planning and inventory optimization models across multi-echelon networks with capacity constraints and variable lead timesFormulate and solve optimization problems (MIP, LP, constraint programming) for production scheduling, allocation, and resource planningBuild simulation and scenario analysis frameworks to support S&OP and integrated business planning workflowsDefine evaluation metrics, build backtesting pipelines, and run controlled experiments to measure and improve model performanceIntegrate cross-domain signals from Avathon's Computational Knowledge Graph -- asset health, logistics, procurement - into planning modelsOwn the path from research to production in collaboration with ML Engineering, delivering scalable and monitored servicesMentor junior data scientists on technical depth and OR/ML fundamentalsYou'll HavePh.D. or master’s degree in operations research, Industrial Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, Applied Mathematics, or a related quantitative field10-15 years of industry experience in applied ML, optimization, or Supply Chain planning systemsDeep experience in at least two of: demand forecasting, supply/inventory optimization, production scheduling, or S&OP analyticsProficiency in Python with hands-on experience in optimization solvers (Gurobi, CPLEX, OR-Tools, or similar) or forecasting libraries (Prophet, statsmodels, GluonTS, or similar)Strong foundation in statistical modeling with sound judgment on when simple methods outperform complex onesExperience with supply chain and operational data - demand history, ERP/MRP transactions, and planning system outputsAbility to translate business problems into mathematical optimization or ML formulationsExperience deploying models into production environmentsPreferred QualificationsPh.D. in Operations Research, Industrial Engineering, Statistics, or a related fieldBackground in supply chain planning platforms or industrial AI (o9, Blue Yonder, Kinaxis, or similar), preferably within the supply chain industryExperience in supply chain planning platforms or industrial AI (o9 Solutions, Blue Yonder, Kinaxis, or similar) preferably from Supply Chain industry.Experience with multi-echelon inventory optimization or network designFamiliarity with probabilistic programming or Bayesian methods for demand sensingExperience with cloud ML infrastructure (AWS SageMaker, GCP Vertex, or equivalent)Domain experience in energy, mining, manufacturing, aerospace, or logistics or Track record of publishing or presenting applied OR/ML work as plusInterview ProcessAs part of the interview process, you will be asked to complete a technical assessment.Benefits & PerksWhat are the benefits and perks at Avathon? Below are some highlights we offer to our U.S. full-time employees -- we'd love to connect and share more!Evolving culture with the opportunity to drive new ideas and technologyStock Option GrantsMedical Coverage and Parental Leave Plans401k with Employer MatchMonthly Technology AllowanceNewly renovated office space located near Pleasanton, CA -- including fully stocked beverage and snack areasContract and temporary roles are not eligible for the above benefits.CompensationPay Range: $160k - $240k salary annually. Pay for this position is based on a number of factors including geographic location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.Location: This role is not remote. Candidates must be based in the Bay Area, CA and are expected to report to our Pleasanton office 5 days a week.Avathon is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, genetic information, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other protected category under applicable federal, state, and local laws.Avathon is committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruiting process. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please contact us to discuss how we can assist you.