PhD student (Doctoral Researcher) in Assistive Speech Processing for Pathological Speakers in Robotic Systems FM

Role Summary

The Signal Processing for Communication group and the Human-centered Robotics and AI group at Idiap are seeking a highly motivated PhD candidate to work on assistive speech technologies for pathological speakers integrated into robotic platforms. The project lies at the intersection of speech processing machine learning assistive AI and humanrobot interaction.

The research will focus on enabling robots and interactive systems to better understand and assist pathological speakers through advanced audio and AI techniques.

The PhD project will include several of the following research areas:

Speech enhancement for pathological speech
Source separation for pathological speakers
Automatic speech recognition (ASR) for pathological speakers
Humanrobot interaction for healthcare and rehabilitation applications
Real-time deployment on robotic systems
Deep learning and generative AI methods for speech processing

The project is part of the Palliacare initiative at Idiap which aims to develop technological tools to support patients with neurological disorders and their caregivers.

The position is intended to be filled from September 1st 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Your Profile

The ideal PhD candidate should have:

• A Masters degree in Electrical Engineering Computer Science Artificial Intelligence Robotics Speech Processing or a related field
• Already been accepted into the EDEE EDIC or EDRS doctoral programs at EPFL
• Strong programming skills in Python and machine learning frameworks
• Background in speech/audio processing deep learning or robotics
• Interest in interdisciplinary research combining AI speech technologies and healthcare
• Excellent communication and scientific writing skills
• Motivation to work in an international research environment

How to apply:

Please provide the following information as three separate pdf files:

1.File 1: (i) CV (ii) grades from your Bachelor and Masters degrees.

2.File 2: (i)a personal motivation letter (maximum 2 pages original neither generated nor edited using AI tools); (ii) a sample of published work (Master thesis article) if available; (iii) reference letters (if available).

3.File 3: Contact details of 3 reference persons.

Application deadline: June 30th 2026.

Screening of applications will start on June 15th 2026.

Contact:

All queries related to the advertised position can be sent to Dr. Ina Kodrasi () and Dr. Emmanuel Senft ().

About Idiap

Idiap is a research institute of national importance that engages in fundamental research education and technology transfer in artificial intelligence. Idiap offers competitive salaries and conditions in a dynamic multicultural environment.

Idiap is located in Martigny Valais a scenic region in the south of Switzerland surrounded by the highest mountains of Europe and offering exceptional quality of life exciting recreational activities including hiking climbing and skiing as well as varied cultural activities.

At Idiap we believe that diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity to being fair and inclusive and to being a place where we all belong. If you believe that you could excel in this role but you are not sure you meet all the required criteria we very much welcome your application.

Required languages

• English - Level advanced

Réf: 29e13d61-5eac-4409-9d76-22da1209e0bf