Staff Data Research Engineer

Join the leader in entertainment innovation and help us design the future. At Dolby, science meets art, and high tech means more than computer code. As a member of the Dolby team, you’ll see and hear the results of your work everywhere, from movie theaters to smartphones. We continue to revolutionize how people create, deliver, and enjoy entertainment worldwide. To do that, we need the absolute best talent. We’re big enough to give you all the resources you need, and small enough so you can make a real difference and earn recognition for your work. We offer a collegial culture, challenging projects, and excellent compensation and benefits, not to mention a Flex Work approach that is truly flexible to support where, when, and how you do your best work.

The Advanced Technology Group (ATG) is the research division of the company. ATG’s mission is to look ahead, deliver insights, and innovate technological solutions that will fuel Dolby’s continued growth. Our researchers have a broad range of expertise related to computer science and electrical engineering, such as AI/ML, algorithms, digital signal processing, audio engineering, image processing, computer vision, data science & analytics, distributed systems, cloud, edge & mobile computing, computer networking, and IoT.

Sight and Sound play a large role in our day-to-day experiences. We believe data can play a huge role in making the experiences personalized and resilient. Data is critical to synthesizing experiences that are otherwise unimaginable.

We’re looking for a talented Staff Architect who is excited to advance the state of the art in technologies of interest to Dolby as well as the human society at large. Research in the areas of data platforms, distributed processing systems, and data science at Dolby Laboratories focuses on all aspects of large-scale cloud and data processing platforms and services, and novel ways to accelerate discovering insight from data.  We are interested in a variety of topics including large-scale distributed systems, stream processing, edge computing, applied machine learning and AI, big graphs, natural language processing, big data management, and heterogenous data analytics.

Specifically, we are looking for an architect who is passionate about  combining science with art —translating research into AI-enabled, low latency real-time streaming systems and applications, which enable the next generation of immersive experiences.

You will:

Partner with Dolby researchers, understand the AI based Imaging/Audio algorithms and optimize the algorithm to run in Cloud and end device in a distributed way.

Be a key part of a team which is trying to figure out how to do low latency cloud offloading of complex algorithms.

Partner to develop a Cloud backend solution, Web App and mobile applications for Android/iOS which connect to the Cloud backend.

What You Will Accomplish

• Design and implement advanced data platforms, unified data models spanning structured and unstructured data sets, and data-enabling systems like metadata management services to support training and inference of AI/ML models in hybrid-cloud environment.
• Design and implement cloud-based, distributed software architectures and microservice-based platforms to enable low latency, real-time streaming and complex event processing that deliver Dolby’s next gen Audio/Visual experiences in the cloud or on end-user devices.
• Develop new applications, novel data collection tools, and instrumentation regimes that enable an amazing variety of interactive and immersive data-driven experiences by inferring context of both content and the world around us using AI-based techniques.
• Consult and implement data governance and management policies to support Dolby’s position as trusted custodian in the media, entertainment, and technology ecosystems.
• Partner with ATG researchers to understand data and advanced cloud system-related opportunities in adjacent research domains such as applied AI and machine learning in Audio / Video domains.

What You Need to Succeed

Competencies

• Technical depth: Necessary technical knowledge to create new SW architecture, platforms, and enabling systems needed for real-time, just-in-time processing for audio/video algorithms running on distributed fashion between cloud and edge devices. Basic knowledge on Audio/Video streaming formats.
• Explore new technologies : Openness to learn new areas and innovate in the new areas.
• Invent & Innovate:  Develop short and long-term technologies, algorithms and software tools that will help make Dolby a world leader in enhancing the sight and sound associated with digital content consumption. Then influence and collaborate with BG partners put the technology into production.
• Work with a sense of Urgency: Responds aggressively to changing trends and new technologies and creates new algorithms to capitalize on them. Takes appropriate risks to be ahead of the competition and the market.
• Collaborate:  Collaborate with and influence peers in developing industry-leading technologies. Work with external trendsetters and technology drivers in academia and in partner enterprises.

What You Bring

• Master’s degree in Computer Science or a related field; PhD is a welcomed plus, but not required
• 5+ years of relevant professional experience designing and building distributed data systems at scale
• A solid foundation in statistics, data science, AI/machine learning, and large‑scale data management
• Strong programming experience in Python, plus at least one additional language such as C++, Go, or Rust
• Hands‑on experience with data structures, distributed systems concepts (e.g., consensus, coordination), data modeling, and analytics over heterogeneous, streaming data
• 4+ years of experience working with cloud and distributed architectures, including microservices and service‑oriented systems; familiarity with API design and implementation (REST, gRPC/Thrift), container orchestration (Kubernetes), and performance optimization
• Experience with real‑time messaging and streaming platforms such as Pub/Sub, Kafka, Storm, Kinesis, Dataflow/Beam, Flink, or Spark Streaming
• Exposure to AI/ML models, cloud optimization strategies, and modern software development patterns
• Working knowledge of DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines (e.g., GitHub Actions), and Linux/UNIX environments
• Familiarity with Git and project‑tracking tools such as JIRA
• Strong problem‑solving skills and a collaborative, partnership‑oriented mindset
• Clear and effective communication and presentation skills

Nice to Have

• Experience with audio/video formats, processing, editing, or streaming
• Hands‑on experience with deep learning frameworks such as TensorFlow or PyTorch
• Experience working with Databricks and/or Apache Spark

Learn more about our innovative research:

The Atlanta Area base salary range for this full-time position is $180,800 -$209,200, which can vary if outside this location, plus bonus, benefits, and some roles may also include equity. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, competencies, experience, market demands, internal parity, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range and perks and benefits for your location during the hiring process.

Dolby will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of San Francisco Police Code, Article 49, and Administrative Code, Article 12

Equal Employment Opportunity:
Dolby is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Our success depends on the combined skills and talents of all our employees. We are committed to making employment decisions without regard to race, religious creed, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, marital status, family status, medical condition, disability, military service, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions or any other classification protected by federal, state, and local laws and ordinances.