Staff Research Engineer, Model Efficiency

About Us

Cohere is the leading security-first enterprise AI company. We build cutting-edge foundation AI models and end-to-end products designed to solve real-world business problems. We train and deploy frontier models for enterprises building AI systems. Our work is instrumental to the widespread adoption of AI, and we’re looking for individuals passionate about contributing to this mission.

We obsess over what we build. Each team member is responsible for increasing the capabilities of our models and the value they drive for customers. Cohere is a global team of researchers, engineers, designers, and more, headquartered in Toronto with key offices in London, New York City, San Francisco, Montreal, Paris, Berlin, and Seoul.

About the Role

Large Language Models (LLMs) continue to push the boundaries of what AI systems can do—but inference is still the bottleneck. The Model Efficiency team is responsible for pushing the limits of LLM inference efficiency across our foundation models. We explore and ship breakthroughs across the model execution stack, including:

• Model architecture and MoE routing optimization
• Decoding and inference-time algorithm improvements
• Software/hardware co-design for GPU acceleration
• Performance optimization without compromising model quality

As a Staff Research Engineer, you will develop, prototype, and deploy techniques that materially improve how fast and efficiently our models run in production. The Model Efficiency team is concentrated in the EST and PST time zones, which are our preferred locations, though we embrace a remote-friendly environment.

Requirements

• PhD in Machine Learning or a related field
• Deep understanding of LLM architecture and optimization of LLM inference under resource constraints
• Significant experience with techniques that enhance model efficiency
• Strong software engineering skills
• Appetite to work in a fast-paced, high-ambiguity startup environment
• Publications at top-tier conferences and venues (e.g., ICLR, ACL, NeurIPS)
• Passion for mentoring others

If any of the above doesn’t line up exactly with your experience, we still encourage you to apply. We strive to create an inclusive work environment and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Benefits

• A weekly lunch stipend of $75/£75 or equivalent in your local currency
• Full health and dental benefits, including a separate budget for mental health
• Retirement savings matching (RRSP, 401K, Pension Scheme)
• 100% parental leave top-up for up to 6 months for either parent
• Annual enrichment benefits: Arts & culture, fitness/wellness, quality time, and a workspace improvement credit
• Education & learning stipend for conferences, courses, and coaching
• 6 weeks of paid vacation (30 working days)
• Budget for traveling to other offices if remote, plus an annual company offsite
• $500 home office stipend to set up your workspace
• For those in the office: daily lunch program, snacks, and regular community/social events
• For those not near an office: co-working benefit to work alongside others in your city