Applied Researcher

Who We Are Aurora’s mission is to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly. The Aurora Driver will create a new era in mobility and logistics, bringing a safer, more efficient, and more accessible future to everyone. At Aurora, you will tackle massively complex problems alongside other passionate, intelligent individuals, growing as an expert while expanding your knowledge. Aurora hires talented people with diverse backgrounds who are ready to build a transportation ecosystem that improves road safety and accessibility. We’re searching for a PhD to serve as our technical pathfinder in the realm of Vision‑Language‑Action (VLA) models. You will identify the 'jagged edges'—the points of failure in current state‑of‑the‑art models—and help us rebuild our architecture from the ground up. In This Role, You Will Focus On Architectural Exploration: Deep dive into VLM/VLA architectures to determine their viability for our specific problem sets. Technical Mentorship: Act as the subject‑matter expert and guide for an exceptionally capable engineering team eager to move into this space. Practical Implementation: Bridge the gap between high‑level academic theory and scalable, production‑grade applications. Innovation: Redesign and optimize model architectures to leverage high‑performance computing environments like Aurora. Required Qualifications PhD in AI, Computer Science, or Robotics from a top‑tier research lab. Deep expertise in Vision‑Language Models (VLM) and Vision‑Language‑Action (VLA) models. Hands‑on experience identifying where current architectures fail and troubleshooting those issues. Ability to translate complex research papers into production‑ready code. Willingness to mentor existing team members and bridge knowledge gaps. Enthusiasm for large‑scale infrastructure and supercomputing environments (e.g., Aurora). Strong architectural creativity: able to rethink and rebuild entire model architectures rather than just fine‑tuning. Proficient programming skills in Python. Strong programming depth in modern C++. Working at Aurora At Aurora, we bring together extraordinarily talented and experienced people united by our values. We operate with integrity, set outrageous goals, and build a culture where we win together—without jerks. We believe in‑person work increases collaboration and empathy, so we operate in a hybrid environment where Aurorans are in the office at least three days per week. Our Careers page provides further insight into what it is like to work at Aurora, and you can find the latest updates in our Newsroom. Our Commitment to Safety Building best‑in‑class self‑driving technology takes time, and we believe each employee at Aurora has a role in contributing to safety at every step. Aurora expects commitment to our safety policies from every employee, seeking candidates who take active responsibility, help build an atmosphere of trust, and prioritize working safely. Our Commitment to Inclusion Aurora considers candidates without regard to protected characteristics and provides reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities. For California applicants, information collected and processed as part of your application is subject to Aurora’s California Employment Privacy Policy. Equal Employment Opportunity Statement Aurora is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. #J-18808-Ljbffr Aurora