Research Lead / Principal Scientist & Manager Post-Training · Alignment · Reinforcement Learning Autodesk AI Lab: London · San Francisco · Toronto · Remote (US/CA/EU) (Portland)

Job Requisition ID #26WD94883Research Lead / Principal Scientist & ManagerPost-Training · Alignment · Reinforcement LearningAutodesk AI Lab: London · San Francisco · Toronto · Remote (US/CA/EU)The OpportunityFoundation models are reshaping how engineers, architects, and designers work-but training foundation models that are reliable, domain-capable systems is still an open research problem.Autodesk touches more of the physical world than almost any other software company. The products we build are used to design skyscrapers, manufacture aircraft, and produce films. AI is now central to how those workflows are evolving — and post-training is the layer that makes the difference between a capable model and one that is dependable and robust in our customers’ high-precision domains.As Research Lead for Post-Training & Alignment, you will own Autodesk's research strategy for transforming foundation models into systems that are reliable, aligned, and genuinely useful in complex, domain-specific workflows. This is a deeply technical leadership role — you will shape research direction, drive key architectural decisions, and remain close to the work.You will lead a growing team of AI scientists while continuing to contribute directly to research: running experiments, developing novel algorithms, and publishing at top-tier venues.This role reports to the Senior Director of AI Research within Autodesk AI Lab.Why This RoleUnique research surface areaAutodesk's domains — architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media & entertainment — provide a distinctive research environment: rich structured data, long-horizon reasoning tasks, and real-world evaluation grounded in professional workflows. Uniquely, decades of investment in physics simulation engines, CAD kernels, and computational design tools give us something most labs don't have: high-fidelity, domain-grounded verifiers that can serve as reward signals for post-training. Rather than relying solely on human preference data, we can ground reinforcement learning in the laws of physics and the constraints of real engineering. These are exactly the kinds of challenges — and assets — that make post-training and alignment research here genuinely distinctive.Research-first, with real impactWe publish at NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, and SIGGRAPH. We collaborate with leading academic and industry labs. And we have a direct line from research advances to product impact at scale. This is not a role where research sits behind a wall from engineering — you will see your work matter.What You Will DoResearch & Technical LeadershipOwn post-training strategy for model development — from RLHF and preference optimization to agentic systems and long-horizon reasoningDevelop novel algorithms that improve model reliability, controllability, and alignmentMake principled architectural decisions about when to address challenges at the pre-training, post-training, or system levelDesign and run experiments that shape model behavior, robustness, and reasoning qualityPartner with infrastructure teams to build scalable, reproducible post-training workflowsContribute to publications, patents, and Autodesk's external research visibilityEvaluation & Model QualityDesign evaluation frameworks for long-horizon reasoning, tool use, agentic behavior, safety, and real-world workflow completionLead rigorous model analysis and interpretability effortsDrive human-in-the-loop evaluation with high annotation quality and sound scientific methodologyEstablish model readiness criteria and provide go/no-go recommendations for releasesCommunicate technical risks, limitations, and trade-offs clearly to leadershipTeam & Organizational LeadershipManage, mentor, and grow a team of AI scientistsSet technical direction and research priorities across post-training and alignment initiativesFoster a research culture grounded in scientific rigor, reproducibility, and fast iterationHelp recruit world-class talent across ML, RL, alignment, and foundation modelsPartner closely with pre-training teams, infrastructure, product organizations, and other stakeholdersTranslate research trade-offs into clear, decision-ready guidance for leadershipWhat We Are Looking ForWe care about research judgment and outcomes, not credential checklists. Strong candidates will typically have:Deep hands-on expertise in reinforcement learning for foundation models, and fluency with post-training methods (RLHF, RLAIF, DPO, PPO, or adjacent approaches)Proven experience leading or mentoring technical research teams — whether in an academic lab, AI research organization, or industry settingStrong intuition for model behavior, alignment challenges, and post-training trade-offsExperience designing evaluation systems and thinking rigorously about what it means for a model to be readyAbility to communicate complex technical trade-offs clearly to both technical and non-technical audiencesA PhD or equivalent depth of industry research experience in ML, RL, AI, or a related fieldWe also value, but do not require:Experience at a frontier model lab or advanced applied AI organizationA strong publication record at leading ML or AI venuesBackground in alignment research, preference learning, or agentic AIExperience deploying or supporting production AI systemsFamiliarity with large-scale training infrastructure and compute trade-offsWhat Success Looks LikeIn the first year, success means:Post-trained models show measurable improvements in reliability, alignment, reasoning quality, and domain usefulnessEvaluation metrics and release criteria are trusted and adopted across teamsThe team delivers high-quality research with practical impact — and team members are growing into stronger, more independent researchersLeadership relies on your judgment for model readiness, technical direction, and risk assessmentAutodesk AI Lab advances its reputation as a serious contributor to frontier AI researchAbout Autodesk AI LabAutodesk AI Lab advances state-of-the-art research across generative AI, multimodal foundation models, reasoning systems, and human-AI collaboration. Our work has direct impact across the industries that shape the physical world. We are an active contributor to the global research community and collaborate closely with leading academic and industry labs.At Autodesk, we are building a diverse workplace and an inclusive culture to give more people the chance to imagine, design, and make a better world. Autodesk is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic.Learn MoreAbout AutodeskWelcome to Autodesk! Amazing things are created every day with our software – from the greenest buildings and cleanest cars to the smartest factories and biggest hit movies. We help innovators turn their ideas into reality, transforming not only how things are made, but what can be made.We take great pride in our culture here at Autodesk – it’s at the core of everything we do. Our culture guides the way we work and treat each other, informs how we connect with customers and partners, and defines how we show up in the world.When you’re an Autodesker, you can do meaningful work that helps build a better world designed and made for all. Ready to shape the world and your future? Join us!BenefitsFrom health and financial benefits to time away and everyday wellness, we give Autodeskers the best, so they can do their best work. Learn more about our benefits in the U.S. by visiting Salary transparencySalary is one part of Autodesk’s competitive compensation package. For U.S.-based roles, we expect a starting base salary between $192,600 and $344,850. Offers are based on the candidate’s experience and geographic location, and may exceed this range. In addition to base salaries, our compensation package may include annual cash bonuses, commissions for sales roles, stock grants, and a comprehensive benefits package.Equal Employment OpportunityAt Autodesk, we're building a diverse workplace and an inclusive culture to give more people the chance to imagine, design, and make a better world. Autodesk is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected characteristic. We also consider for employment all qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with applicable law.Diversity & BelongingWe take pride in cultivating a culture of belonging where everyone can thrive. Learn more here: Are you an existing contractor or consultant with Autodesk? Please search for open jobs and apply internally (not on this external site).SummaryLocation: San Francisco, CA, USA; AMER - United States - Massachusetts - Boston - Drydock; AMER - United States - Oregon - Portland; California, USA - Remote; Boston, MA, USA; AMER - United States - Massachusetts - Boston Area - Offsite/Home; Toronto, ON, CAN; Portland, OR, USAType: Full time