The application window is expected to close on: 10/01/2026
Your ImpactAs an Applied AI Researcher, you will work with other AI researchers to take methods from paper and prototype into production models on NeuralFabric-domain models, RL, and agent simulation that Cisco and customers can actually use.
- Partner with AI researchers to design, train, and fine-tune Small Language Models for network, security, observability, and operations problems using current post-training techniques.
- Advance reinforcement learning, Auto Gym, and agent-simulation methods with the research team, and turn those methods into reusable training and evaluation recipes on the platform.
- Define evaluation methods and promotion gates with researchers and engineers so model quality is measurable and repeatable.
- Stay current with LLMs, SLMs, multi-modal models, and agents, and apply that research to internal and customer use cases through technical deep-dives-not as a dedicated forward-deployment owner.
Minimum Qualifications- PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, or a related field with 5+ years of experience in applied AI/ML research or engineering.
- Experience independently designing, training, and fine-tuning language models for production or applied research use.
- Previous use of Python and deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX, or Hugging Face Transformers.
- Experience with advanced post-training methods such as LoRA, QLoRA, PEFT, instruction tuning, supervised fine-tuning, or reinforcement learning from human or AI feedback.
- Track record of leading applied AI projects from research through production deployment, with documented outcomes across more than one domain or problem.
Preferred Qualifications- Publications in top AI conferences such as ACL, EMNLP, ICLR, ICML, NAACL, or NeurIPS.
- Experience with Small Language Models, efficient architectures, model compression, reinforcement learning, gym-style training environments, or agent evaluation harnesses.
- Familiarity with networking, cybersecurity, observability, or IT operations domains.
- Experience with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), advanced evaluation methodologies, and model promotion or lineage gates.
- Ability to work closely with other AI researchers and engineers, explain technical work and collaborate with business-unit or customer partners when a use case requires it.
The starting salary range posted for this position is $216,300.00 to $280,800.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits.
Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.
U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco's plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks. Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.
U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco's policies:
- 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
- 1 paid day off for employee's birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco
- Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees
- Exempt employees participate in Cisco's flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations)
- 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next
- Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
- Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco's policies.
Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:
- .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;
- 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;
- 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and
- Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.
For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.
The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below:
New York City Metro Area:
$216,300.00 - $322,900.00
Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:
$197,500.00 - $287,300.00
* For quota-based sales roles on Cisco's sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.
** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.
