Senior AI Research Scientist – Human Behavior and Carbon Neutrality

Los Altos, CA - USA

Yearly Salary: $ 200000 - 300000

Posted on: 08-11-2025

Vacancies: 1 Vacancy

Job Summary

At Toyota Research Institute (TRI) were on a mission to improve the quality of human life. Were developing new tools and capabilities to amplify the human experience. To lead this transformative shift in mobility weve built a world-class team in Automated Driving Energy & Materials Human-Centered AI Human Interactive Driving Large Behavioral Models and Robotics.

The Team

TRIs 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.

The Opportunity

We are looking for an AI research scientist who has expertise in and ethusiasm for machine learning research (e.g. foundation models including training and fine-tuning on large industrial-scale datasets). This researcher would work at the intersection of social science and generative AI training and fine-tuning models representing human behaviors and cognitive processes such as changes in beliefs and preferences over time. For an example of our research in this vein please see cross-functionally with specialists in multiple fields as well as university partners to research and develop technology that employs and leverage generative AI to understand human behavior and preferences.

Conduct research that integrates behavioral and social science concepts with machine learning methods to push the boundaries of knowledge and the state of the art in Human-Centered AI.

Stay up to date on the state-of-the-art in Machine Learning theories practice and software.

Collaborate with scientists in the Carbon Neutrality Department to shape our research program and to communicate research to Toyota collaborators.

Publish findings in academic journals and/or conferences.

Contribute to technology transfer of research throughout Toyota.

Qualifications

PhD or equivalent experience in computer science machine learning social science computation or related field.
3 years of experience engaged in research pertaining to machine learning or related projects in an industry setting.
Experience with LLM/MLLM large scale fine-tuning (e.g. SFT RLHF) RAG and agentic systems.
Experience in human-centered research (e.g. behavioral data science computational social science human-computer interaction) including qualitative and/or quantitative methods such as experiments and user studies.
Experience with Python C C Java or other related language deep learning frameworks such as Pytorch or Tensorflow.
Strong data science skills.
Proficiency in other big data languages and tools for cloud environments (e.g. Databricks SQL PySpark).
Broad knowledge of machine learning approaches and theory.
Ability to work collaboratively across subject areas and functions.
Strong project management skills and desire to work on challenging open-ended research projects.
Evidenced skill in operating autonomously while seeking feedback.
Strong interpersonal skills and great teammate.
Ability to communicate complex concepts clearly across different audiences.

Bonus Qualifications

Experience with time series modeling and data analysis.
Ability to balance multiple projects including short-term targeted analyses and novel innovative projects that may span several years.
Experience with one or more of the following areas: diffusion models uncertainty modeling reinforcement learning physiological signal processing.
Previous experience in human modeling (both cognitive and behavioral) with generative AI.

The pay range for this position at commencement of employment is expected to be between $200000 and $300000/year for California-based roles. Base pay offered will depend on multiple individualized factors including but not limited to business or organizational needs market location job-related knowledge skills and experience. TRI offers a generous benefits package including medical dental and vision insurance 401(k) eligibility paid time off benefits (including vacation sick time and parental leave) and an annual cash bonus structure. Additional details regarding these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.

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TRI is fueled by a diverse and inclusive community of people with unique backgrounds education and life experiences. We are dedicated to fostering an innovative and collaborative environment by living the values that are an essential part of our culture. We believe diversity makes us stronger and are proud to provide Equal Employment Opportunity for all without regard to an applicants race color creed gender gender identity or expression sexual orientation national origin age physical or mental disability medical condition religion marital status genetic information veteran status or any other status protected under federal state or local laws.

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We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process such as reviewing applications analyzing resumes or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed please contact us.

Required Experience:

Senior IC