PhD in robotics, computer science, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, or related field with relevant publications.
Hands-on experience with vision-language or foundation models for spatial reasoning and memory.
Expertise in 3D representations like scene graphs and object-centric maps.
Proficient in Python and capable of implementing methods on real robots using C++ and ROS 2.
Ability to evaluate representations and adapt to fast-paced research environments.
Responsibilities
Investigate representation for robot's mission memory across various missions and sites.
Build world models for reasoning and planning based on memory.
Combine learned models with geometry and dynamics for accurate digital twins.
Bridge the perception-reasoning gap to enhance long-term autonomy.
Benefits
Generous salary range based on individual background and experience.
Opportunities for professional growth in cutting-edge robotics.
Collaborative work environment with a focus on innovative research.
Access to advanced technology and resources for real-world applications.
Full Job Description
What You Will Get To Do
Investigate the appropriate representation for the robot's mission memory: a persistent spatio-temporal representation of what it saw, where, when, and how it changed, across missions and sites, so assets that move, disappear, or degrade are tracked rather than rediscovered.
Build world models that let the robot reason and plan over that memory and recover physical parameters through interaction for physics-aware digital twins.
Combine learned and physically grounded models, with geometry and dynamics as the ground truth.
Bridge the perception-reasoning gap for long-term autonomy.
What You Have
PhD in robotics, computer science, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, or a related field, with publications at top venues such as RSS, CoRL, ICRA, IROS, T-FR, T-RO, CVPR, NeurIPS, or similar, on scene understanding, semantic SLAM, lifelong or spatio-temporal mapping, world models, or embodied reasoning.
Hands-on experience with vision-language or foundation models applied to spatial reasoning, memory, or long-horizon embodied question answering.
Depth in 3D representations: scene graphs, neural or Gaussian-splat maps, or object-centric maps, and the estimation underneath them.
Strong Python; able to run your methods on real robots with C++ and ROS 2.
Clear thinking about what a representation is for and how to evaluate it, and comfort with a fast-paced environment where research questions are set by what the next deployment needs.
What Will Set You Apart
Change detection or long-term mapping results from real deployments.
Real2Sim, system identification through interaction, or digital-twin work.
Experience with behavior trees or task planning driven by language models.
Industrial or field robotics exposure.
Our salary range is generous and we consider each individual's background and experience when determining final compensation. Base pay may vary based on role scope, job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and the Irvine, California market.
