Machine Learning Engineer, Prediction & Planning (Autonomous Driving)

TL;DR

Machine Learning Engineer, Prediction & Planning (Autonomous Driving): Developing next-generation ML-powered prediction and planning systems for autonomous vehicles with an accent on deep neural networks, foundation models, and reinforcement learning. Focus on transforming large-scale driving data into robust models to ensure safe and efficient navigation in complex environments.

Location: Hybrid in Mountain View, California or San Francisco, California

Salary: $175,000 — $215,000 USD

Company

Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company building the Waymo Driver to improve global mobility and road safety.

What you will do

• Develop next-generation ML prediction and planning systems to support the rapid scaling of Waymo’s business.
• Research and apply cutting-edge ML techniques, including foundation models and reinforcement learning.
• Collaborate with researchers, engineers, and product owners to create safe and smooth planning behaviors for all road users.
• Develop and evaluate large models and integrate them into production planning software.

Requirements

• BS in Computer Science, ML, Robotics, or a similar technical field.
• 2+ years of experience in Machine Learning modeling and/or Autonomous Vehicles.
• Demonstrated contributions to the ML community via publications, open-source projects, or significant industry impact.
• Hands-on experience with modern deep learning libraries (e.g., TensorFlow, JAX, PyTorch).
• Proficient programming skills in Python and C/C++.
• Strong analytical and debugging skills.

Nice to have

• MS or PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, or Robotics.
• Publications in top-tier conferences such as ICML, NeurIPS, CVPR, ICCV, ECCV, ICLR, IROS, CoRL, ACL, or EMNLP.
• Software engineering experience solving motion planning or related robotics problems.
• Experience applying or evaluating ML-based systems in production environments.
• Experience with performance optimization of deep models for specific hardware architectures.

Culture & Benefits

• Discretionary annual bonus program.
• Equity incentive plan.
• Generous company benefits program.
• Flexible hybrid work arrangement.