At Toyota Research Institute (TRI), we’re on a mission to improve the quality of human life. We’re developing new tools and capabilities to amplify the human experience. To lead this transformative shift in mobility, we’ve built a world-class team in Human-Centered AI, Energy and Materials, Machine Learning, and Robotics.
TRI’s Carbon Neutrality Department within our Human-Centered AI (HCAI) Division blends behavioral science, human-computer interaction research, and machine learning to understand, predict and enable carbon neutral behavior.
We are looking for a Machine Learning Researcher with expertise and passion for foundation models, as well as training and fine-tuning on large, industrial-scale datasets. This researcher would work to define new lines of research in the generative AI space in relation to training and fine-tuning models representing human behaviors and cognitive processes, such as changes in beliefs and preferences over time. This researcher may also apply data science expertise to inform carbon neutral policy and strategy decisions. 

Responsibilities

• Conduct daring research, primarily in the area of generative AI models, that solves open problems of high practical and/or ethical value and validate it in real-world benchmarks and systems
• Push the boundaries of knowledge and the state of the art in Human-Centered AI, including: NLP, multi-modal models, and time-varying language models
• Stay up to date on the state-of-the-art in Machine Learning theories, practice, and software
• Conduct exploratory analyses with large datasets to identify areas of opportunity and address strategic questions
• Collaborate with scientists in the Carbon Neutrality Department to craft and shape our research program and to communicate research to Toyota partners
• Publish findings in academic journals and/or conferences
• Contribute to technology transfer of research throughout Toyota

Qualifications

• PhD in natural language processing, computer vision, machine learning, or related field
• 3+ years of experience in machine learning research or related projects
• Experience with generative AI models
• Broad knowledge of machine learning approaches and theory
• Capable of working collaboratively across subject areas and functions
• Desire to work on challenging open-ended research projects
• Demonstrated ability to work autonomously while soliciting feedback
• Strong interpersonal skills and an excellent teammate
• Strong data science skills. Proficiency in R and/or Python
• Proficiency in other big data languages and tools for cloud environments (e.g., Databricks, SQL, PySpark)
• Ability to communicate sophisticated concepts clearly across different audiences

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience with language transformers, vision transformers, diffusion models, or multi-modal models
• Ability to balance multiple projects, including short-term, targeted analyses and novel, innovative projects that may span years

The pay range for this position at commencement of employment is expected to be between $151,800 and $210,000/year for California-based roles; however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Note that TRI offers a generous benefits package (including 401(k) eligibility and various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave) and an annual cash bonus structure. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.
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