Research Scientist: Energy Based Models

The role

You will develop foundational principles of Artificial General Intelligence. This involves developing architectures and learning algorithms for neuroscience-inspired energy-based world models.

What you will do

• Develop and implement new architectures and learning/inference algorithms for neuroscience-inspired energy-based world models.
• Design experiments to test hypotheses regarding high-level cognition, causal representations, sensory-motor integration, active inference, and unsupervised learning.
• Work alongside neuroscientists and software engineers to translate abstract mathematical frameworks into scalable systems.
• Help innovate new publication models that incentivize speedy dissemination, open source code releases, free open access, and impact measurements.

Required qualifications

• Strong foundations in deep learning, graphical models, and information theory.
• Expert-level skills in deep learning frameworks (PyTorch/JAX).
• Focus on clean, reproducible research code.
• Demonstrated interest in the big questions of AI such as robustness, generalization, and common-sense reasoning.
• Genuine passion for exploring the computational and architectural principles of the mammalian brain.
• Ability to thrive in a lean, fast-paced environment with high autonomy.

Nice to have

• PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Neuroscience, Physics, or a related quantitative field.
• Exceptional candidates with non-traditional educational histories.

About the company

Astera is a private foundation on a mission to steer science and technology toward a better future. They have committed a $3.5B endowment to grants, investments, and in-house research programs.