Principal Engineer Autonomous Vehicle AI - Formulation

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We're working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our diverse team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!

This position is part of the Space Systems Development (SSD) business unit. SSD develops next-generation concepts and systems to advance our future of living and working in space sustainably.

We are a diverse team of collaborators, doers, and problem-solvers who are committed to a culture of safety. This position directly impacts the history of space exploration and requires a commitment and detailed attention toward safe and repeatable space flight. Join us in lowering the cost of access to space and enabling Blue Origin's vision of millions of people living and working in space to benefit Earth.

The SSD Formulation team is multidisciplinary, covering power systems, simulation and environments, thermal and fluids management, guidance, navigation, and control (GNC), autonomy, command and control, data handling and instrumentation, electrical integration and avionics, and propulsion. Working with this team to serve the various projects, studies, and programs in a rapid formulation design environment will be a key responsibility while contributing technically as an individual contributor sharing your expertise.

Our group in Formulation is employing a fast-paced agile process to rapidly address early formulation work through a series of three-week sprints. This position will be as an active participant in this environment and requires the appropriate mindset of bias for action while quickly delivering results. The decisions made early on will set Blue Origin up for long-term success. It also requires a comfort with ambiguity and an ability to find a path forward.

We are seeking a top-tier Autonomous Vehicle AI Principal Engineer with experienced and demonstrated skills in advanced neural networks. The ideal candidate is an expert in applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to the challenges of autonomous navigation. You will be at the forefront of developing intelligent systems that enable vehicles to interpret their surroundings and navigate through complex environments with little or no human intervention.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Spearhead the development of AI-driven algorithms to accurately perceive, understand, and act within the vehicle's environment.
2. Design and implement sophisticated machine learning models for object detection, classification, semantic segmentation, and anomaly detection specific to autonomous driving scenarios.
3. Train, validate, and deploy neural networks capable of real-time performance in onboard vehicle systems, optimizing for accuracy, speed, and low-power consumption.
4. Work collaboratively with a multidisciplinary team of engineers, researchers, and scientists to integrate AI/ML solutions into a comprehensive autonomous driving platform.
5. Simulate and test autonomous driving algorithms using both synthesized data and real-world driving scenarios to ensure robustness.
6. Provide thought leadership in AI/ML by keeping abreast of the latest research and trends in the field, with a focus on applications in autonomous vehicles.
7. Optimize AI models for edge and cloud deployment, addressing challenges such as latency, model compression, and distributed computing for vehicle fleets.
8. Develop metrics and validation strategies to quantitatively assess the performance of computer vision and path planning systems in varied conditions.
9. Contribute to the continuous improvement of in-house machine learning pipelines and tools for data annotation, model training, and performance monitoring.
10. Mentor junior AI engineers and actively participate in the AI/ML community.

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Master's or PhD in Computer Science, Robotics, AI, Machine Learning, or a closely related field, with a strong emphasis on autonomous systems.
2. 10+ years experience in applying deep learning in computer vision, preferably in the context of autonomous vehicles or robotics.
3. In-depth understanding of sensor fusion, environmental perception, and spatial-temporal reasoning for autonomous navigation.
4. Strong proficiency in Python, C++, and deep learning libraries (TensorFlow, PyTorch) along with experience using simulation and visualization tools.
5. Demonstrable experience in deploying sense and act algorithms to enable safe and efficient control for vehicles.
6. Ability to work hands-on with hardware and software debugging in a real-world automotive testing environment.
7. Ability to work in a fast-paced, cross-functional team atmosphere and deliver results under tight deadlines.
8. Exceptional analytical skills and the capability to tackle problems with creative solutions.
9. Excellent communication skills to effectively share complex technical information with other team members and stakeholders.
10. Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.