Applied Science Director, Delivery Foundation Model

Applied Science Director, Delivery Foundation Model Job ID: 2999175 | Amazon.com Services LLC Join the next science and engineering revolution at Amazon's Delivery Foundation Model team, where you'll work alongside world‑class scientists and engineers to pioneer the next frontier of logistics through advanced AI and foundation models. We are seeking an exceptional Applied Science Director to lead the development of innovative foundation models that enable delivery of billions of packages worldwide. In this role, you'll combine highly technical work with scientific leadership, ensuring the team delivers robust solutions for dynamic real‑world environments. Your team will leverage Amazon's vast data and computational resources to tackle ambitious problems across a diverse set of Amazon delivery use cases. Key job responsibilities Lead software developers and scientists developing generative, multi‑modal foundation models to support Amazon’s worldwide delivery network. Guide technical direction for specific research initiatives, ensuring robust performance in production environments. Build and manage the model development roadmap in support of critical Last Mile Delivery use cases. Define goals for model development and adoption, and own all project‑related communication to a diverse set of stakeholders. Hire, develop and manage a team of talented scientists and engineers. A day in the life Develop and implement novel foundation model architectures, working hands‑on with data and our extensive training and evaluation infrastructure. Guide and support fellow scientists in solving complex technical challenges, from trajectory planning to efficient multi‑task learning. Guide and support fellow engineers in building scalable and reusable infrastructure to support model training, evaluation, and inference. Lead focused technical initiatives from conception through deployment, ensuring successful integration with production systems. Drive technical discussions within the team and key stakeholders. Conduct experiments and prototype new ideas. Mentor team members while maintaining significant hands‑on contribution to technical solutions. About the team The Delivery Foundation Model team combines ambitious research vision with real‑world impact. Our foundation models provide generative reasoning capabilities required to meet the demands of Amazon's global Last Mile delivery network. We leverage Amazon's unparalleled computational infrastructure and extensive datasets to deploy state‑of‑the‑art foundation models to improve the safety, quality, and efficiency of Amazon deliveries. Our work spans the full spectrum of foundation model development, from multimodal training using images, videos, and sensor data, to sophisticated modeling strategies that can handle diverse real‑world scenarios. We build everything end to end, from data preparation to model training and evaluation to inference, along with all the tooling needed to understand and analyze model performance. Basic Qualifications PhD, or Master's degree and 10+ years of applied research experience. 10+ years of building machine learning models or developing algorithms for production software systems. 7+ years of managing software and applied science teams. Extensive track record of leading technical projects. Demonstrated expertise in deep learning and model development. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Preferred Qualifications Experience as first‑author publications at major conferences. Experience leading research initiatives in foundation models. Experience with large‑scale distributed systems. Experience bridging research with practical engineering implementation. Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status. Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner. Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several US geographic markets. The base pay for this position ranges from $262,500/year in our lowest geographic market up to $350,000/year in our highest geographic market. Pay is based on a number of factors including market location and may vary depending on job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience. Amazon is a total compensation company. Dependent on the position offered, equity, sign‑on payments, and other forms of compensation may be provided as part of a total compensation package, in addition to a full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits. For more information, please visit https://www.aboutamazon.com/workplace/employee-benefits. This position will remain posted until filled. Applicants should apply via our internal or external career site. #J-18808-Ljbffr