Research Scientist, World Models – Policy Training and Evaluation
Toyota Research InstituteLos Altos, California
Full Time
Posted August 4, 2025
$176k - $264k
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Application opens on company website
Job Description
A Research Scientist role focused on developing and tailoring world models for autonomous vehicle policy learning and evaluation, integrating perception, environment modeling, and reinforcement learning to create robust, adaptable, and interpretable driving policies.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop and tailor world models for effective use in policy learning and evaluation for autonomous vehicles.
- Bridge perception-driven environment models with the training of decision-making policies.
- Ensure learned world models are faithful, controllable, and informative for safe and robust policy optimization.
Requirements
- A creative and rigorous Research Scientist with experience in tailoring world models for effective use in policy learning and evaluation for autonomous vehicles.
- Experience in research efforts that bridge perception-driven environment models and the training of intelligent decision-making policies.
- Ability to ensure that learned world models can serve as faithful, controllable, and informative substrates for safe and robust policy optimization and evaluation.
- Educational background or equivalent experience relevant to AI, robotics, autonomous systems, or related fields (implied by research scientist role, though specific degree requirements are not explicitly stated).
- Demonstrated ability to develop scalable, human-like driving intelligence by learning from expert human drivers (implied by project focus).
- Experience with creating configurable, data-driven world models for multi-agent reasoning in dynamic driving environments.
- Knowledge of perception, world modeling, and model-based reinforcement learning techniques.
- Experience in developing robust, adaptable, and interpretable driving policies that generalize across tasks, sensor modalities, and public road scenarios.
- Ability to contribute to research efforts that integrate perception, world modeling, and reinforcement learning to improve autonomous driving systems.
- Submission of a brief cover letter and a link to Google Scholar to include a full list of publications when applying for the position.
Benefits & Perks
Salary range between 176,000 and 264,000 per year
Work schedule details not specified
Medical, dental, and vision insurance
401(k) eligibility
Paid time off including vacation, sick leave, and parental leave
Annual cash bonus
Ready to Apply?
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