Principal AI Researcher

Location: Pleasanton, California, USA. Hybrid Flex Work requires spending at least 50% of each quarter in the office or in the field with customers, prospects, or partners.

Annual base salary: $228,000–$342,000 USD for the primary location; $206,000–$370,000 USD for additional US locations. The role may also include bonus compensation and annual refresh stock grants.

Company

hirify.global is a Fortune 500 enterprise software company and AI platform focused on managing people, money, and intelligent agents.

What you will do

• Define research direction and roadmaps for agentic AI, LLMs, reasoning, planning, and model alignment.
• Advance agentic systems through retrieval, grounding, memory, context, personalization, tool use, and multi-agent capabilities.
• Lead foundational model research covering pre-training, post-training, RLHF, DPO, and domain-specific alignment for HR and Finance workflows.
• Publish research at leading AI venues and guide strategic open-source releases.
• Partner with engineering teams to integrate state-of-the-art research into production services operating at enterprise scale.
• Mentor researchers and establish a culture of scientific rigor, curiosity, and rapid experimentation.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in AI/ML research or applied science, including taking applied research into global-scale production.
• Ph.D. or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Mathematics, Physics, or an equivalent technical field.
• 4+ years of professional experience with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch, JAX, or TensorFlow.
• 2+ years of deep expertise in LLMs or VLMs, including training, RLHF/DPO alignment, or agentic reasoning frameworks.
• Strong publication record at top AI venues or a proven record of delivering industry-defining AI innovations to millions of users.
• Experience with reinforcement learning, tool use, or multi-agent systems, plus the ability to address latency, cost, privacy, explainability, fairness, and safety constraints.

Culture & Benefits

• Research-to-reality environment connecting fundamental AI research with production-grade enterprise agents.
• Flexible hybrid work with in-person collaboration in offices or the field for at least half of each quarter.
• Eligibility for the hirify.global Bonus Plan or role-specific bonus and annual refresh stock grants.
• Comprehensive benefits and reasonable accommodations during the application and employment process.
• Equal opportunity employment with a focus on integrity, empathy, scientific rigor, and responsible AI.