Principal Researcher - Deep Learning, Reinforcement Learning – Microsoft Research

1 Month ago • 3-8 Years • Artificial Intelligence • $137,600 PA - $294,000 PA

Job Summary

Job Description

Microsoft Research's AI Frontiers lab seeks a Principal Researcher in Deep Learning and Reinforcement Learning to contribute to the advancement of Large Action Models (LAMs) and Large Language Models (LLMs). Responsibilities include designing, developing, and implementing research projects in areas like pre-training, alignment, continual learning, and multi-agent systems. The role involves collaborating with researchers, engineers, and product groups to bring research breakthroughs to real-world applications. Experience with real-world reinforcement learning, large-scale machine learning pipelines, and LLM pre-training/fine-tuning is highly valued. The successful candidate will demonstrate a strong publication record and a keen interest in practical impact.
Must have:
  • Doctorate in Computer Science or related field
  • 3+ years research experience (8+ preferred)
  • Experience with LLMs and reinforcement learning
  • Strong publication record (NeurIPS, ICML, etc.)
  • Collaboration and communication skills
Good to have:
  • Experience with large-scale behavior cloning
  • Experience optimizing large-scale ML pipelines
  • Experience building data pipelines
  • Keen interest in real-world applications
Perks:
  • Industry leading healthcare
  • Educational resources
  • Discounts on products and services
  • Savings and investments
  • Maternity and paternity leave
  • Generous time away
  • Giving programs
  • Networking opportunities

Job Details

Overview

Microsoft Research (MSR)AI Frontiers lab is seeking applications for the position ofPrincipal Researcher to join their team. This role can be located in any one of our 3 labs: New York City, NY, Cambridge, MA, and Redmond, WA. 

 

The mission of the  lab is to expand the pareto frontier of Artficial Intelligence (AI) capabilities, efficiency, and safety through innovations in foundation models and learning agent platforms. Some of our projects include work on Small Language Models (e.g. Phi, Orca), foundation models for actions (e.g., in gaming, robotics, and Office productivity tools) and Multi-Agent AI (e.g.AutoGen).  

   

We are seeking a Principal Researcher to join our team and contribute to the advancement of Large Action Model (LAM) and Large Language Model (LLM) technologies. As a Principal Researcher, you will play a crucial role in developing, improving, and exploring the capabilities of AI models. Your work will have a significant impact on the development of cutting-edge technologies, advancing state-of-the-art and providing practical solutions to real-world problems.    

   

Our ongoing research areas encompass but are not limited to:  

  • Pre-training: especially of language models, action models and multimodal models  
  • Alignment and Post-training: e.g., Instruction tuning and reinforcement learning from feedback  
  • Continual Learning: Enabling LLMs to evolve and adapt over time and learn from previous experiences human interactions  
  • Specialization: Tailoring models to meet application-specific requirements  
  • Orchestration and multi-agent systems: automated orchestration between multiple agents incorporating human feedback and oversight  

 

Microsoft Research (MSR) offers a vibrant environment for cutting-edge, multidisciplinary, research, including access to diverse, real-world problems and data, opportunities for experimentation and real-world impact, an open publication policy, and close links to top academic institutions around the world. 

 

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

In alignment with our Microsoft values, we are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment for all employees to positively impact our culture every day.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications  

  • Doctorate in Computer Science or relevant field AND 3+ years related research experience 
    • OR equivalent experience. 
  • Research program demonstrated by publications at conferences: NeurIPS, ICML,ICLR, ACL, NAACL, CVPR, COLT, ECCV, ICCV, EMNLP

   

Preferred Qualifications 

  • Doctorate in Computer Science or relevant field AND 8+ years related research experience 
    • OR equivalent experience.  
  • Experience with real world reinforcement learning, including large scale behavior cloning and policy optimization.   
  • Experience in creating, optimizing and running large scale machine learning pipelines  
  • Experience in running large scale experiments with LLMs pre-training and/or finetuning  
  • Experience in building data collection and curation pipelines.  
  • Ability to collaborate, communicate effectively, and work as part of a multi-disciplinary team.    
  • Keen interest in real-world applications and impact.
  • Reference letters are welcomed, though they are not mandatory. Please include them, if available.

 

Research Sciences IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $137,600 - $267,000 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $180,400 - $294,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:

Microsoft will accept applications and processes offers for these roles on an ongoing basis.

 

 

#Research

Responsibilities

  • As a Principal Researcher in AI Frontiers, you will design, develop, execute, and implement technology research projects in collaboration with other researchers, engineers, and product groups.   
  • As a member of a world-class research organization, you will be a part of research breakthroughs in the field and will be given an opportunity to realize your ideas in products and services used worldwide. 
  • Embody our and .
Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.
Industry leading healthcare
Educational resources
Discounts on products and services
Savings and investments
Maternity and paternity leave
Generous time away
Giving programs
Opportunities to network and connect

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