Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Driver Understanding and Evaluation

Job Summary

The DUE Machine Learning team at Waymo is seeking researchers and software engineers with a passion for developing machine learning techniques for evaluating the Waymo Driver. This role involves designing and building gen AI LLM/VLM solutions for self-driving car behavior analysis and anomaly detection, enhancing user feedback analysis, and overseeing the production and optimization of machine learning models.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development of cutting-edge deep learning and machine learning models to enhance human-led triaging and introduce automation for high-volume workflows
• Design and build gen AI LLM/VLM solutions for self-driving car behavior analysis and anomaly detection
• Proactively monitor and assimilate best practices from within Alphabet and the broader industry to develop a Reinforcement Learning from human preference-based data collection and evaluation system
• Enhance user feedback analysis, collaborating seamlessly with product and business teams to design and implement tools for multi-label classifications, sentiment assessment, comment summarization, root cause analysis, and trend analysis of rider feedback
• Oversee the production and optimization of machine learning models aiming to assess Waymo's expansive fleet of vehicles that cumulatively travel millions of miles
• Drive technical direction, provide technical inputs and guidance to the team, and work closely with PMs and TPMs to help define product requirements and align the technical agenda with the company's business objectives
• Collaborate closely with multiple teams (e.g., Prediction, Planning, Research), other technical leads, and senior leaderships across Waymo to deliver on key strategic efforts

Requirements

• B.S. in Computer Science, Robotics, Machine Learning, similar technical field of study, or equivalent practical experience
• 7+ years of experience with hands-on experience in machine learning projects
• Strong coding experience in C++ and/or Python
• Experience in at least one of: Foundational Models, VLM, Deep Learning
• Experience with ML frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, Hugging Face's transformers, along with expertise in deep learning models and ML deployment at scale

Preferred Qualifications

• M.S. or Ph.D. degree in Computer Science or related quantitative field with a specialization of machine learning
• 10+ years of experience with hands-on experience in machine learning projects
• Deep learning experience with Transformers
• Gen AI LLM/VLM experience
• Experience with building tools for applied machine learning, including MLOps, evaluation/validation techniques, and model performance optimization
• Large-scale data processing and analytical skills