Advanced AI Scientist — Austin

Overview: At Zebra, we are a community of innovators who come together to create new ways of working. United by curiosity and a culture of caring, we develop smart solutions that anticipate our customer’s and partner’s needs and solve their challenges. Being part of Zebra Nation means you are seen, heard, valued, and respected. Drawing from our unique perspectives, we collaborate to deliver on our purpose. Here you are part of a team pushing boundaries today to redefine the work of tomorrow for organizations, their employees, and those they serve.   You’ll have opportunities to learn and lead in a forward-thinking environment, defining your path to a fulfilling career while channeling your skills toward causes you care about—locally and globally. Come make an impact every day at Zebra. What We're Looking For: The Advanced AI Scientist is a highly experienced technical individual contributor within Product and Forward Deployed Engineering, responsible for developing and delivering AI/GenAI solutions for strategic customers. The role works closely with customers, Product, Engineering, and cross-functional teams to translate complex business challenges into production-ready solutions with measurable business impact. Key Responsibilities • Develop and deliver AI/GenAI solutions using LLMs, foundation models, RAG, multimodal AI, and emerging agentic technologies to solve complex customer problems. • Build advanced agentic applications using multi-agent orchestration, planning and execution, tool calling, MCP/A2A, agent memory and state, and adaptive execution patterns. • Engineer reliable AI systems through model selection, prompt and context engineering, evaluation, benchmarking, guardrails, robust tool execution, and continuous improvement. • Develop AI evaluation and observability capabilities to measure task completion, agent behavior, tool use, quality, reliability, latency, and cost. • Develop production-grade software using Python, Java, Go, or TypeScript, integrating AI capabilities with enterprise applications, APIs, data, and customer workflows. • Deploy, operate, troubleshoot, and optimize AI solutions for security, reliability, performance, scalability, cost efficiency, and user experience. • Lead technical delivery for strategic customers, from problem discovery and rapid prototyping through production deployment, adoption, and continuous improvement. • Collaborate with customers, Product, Engineering, and cross-functional teams to translate business needs into technical solutions, communicate tradeoffs, and influence product direction. • Drive innovation by evaluating emerging AI technologies and translating customer learnings into reusable frameworks, tools, engineering practices, and product capabilities.   Minimum Qualifications: -Master’s or Ph.D in mathematics, statistics, computer science, computer engineering, operations research, or related field. -Minimum 8+ years' experience in data science, machine learning, or software engineering required. Preferred Qualifications: • Deep hands-on experience with Generative AI, LLMs, foundation models, RAG, multimodal AI, prompt/context engineering, and AI application development. • Strong expertise in agentic AI, including multi-agent systems, orchestration, planning and execution, tool calling, agent memory/state, MCP/A2A, and emerging agentic patterns. • Experience building reliable AI systems through evaluation, benchmarking, guardrails, hallucination mitigation, observability, and continuous improvement. • Strong software engineering skills, with proficiency in Python and/or languages such as Java, Go, or TypeScript. • Experience deploying and operating production AI systems, with a focus on reliability, security, performance, scalability, observability, and cost efficiency. • Demonstrated ability to rapidly experiment with emerging AI technologies and translate concepts into practical, production-ready solutions that deliver measurable customer outcomes. Equal Opportunity Employer: Zebra is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability and protected veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by law. If you are an individual with a disability and need assistance in applying for a position, please contact us at workplace.accommodations@zebra.com. Know Your Rights: https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2022-10/EEOC_KnowYourRights_screen_reader_10_20.pdf Conozca sus Derechos: https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2022-10/22-088_EEOC_KnowYourRightsSp_10_20.pdf We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation at workplace.accommodations@zebra.com . Pay Range: $138,800.00 - $208,200.00 Annual Incentive Compensation: In addition to base pay, Zebra offers this role the opportunity to earn a performance-based annual cash incentive, at a target equal to 15% of base pay, in accordance with the terms of the applicable incentive plan. Zebra Total Rewards: Zebra Total Rewards includes more than just pay and is structured to meet the needs of our changing global business and evolving talent. We are committed to providing our employees with a benefits program that is comprehensive and competitive – including healthcare, wellness, inclusion networks, and continued learning and development offerings. We offer community service days, in addition to the traditional insurances, compensation, parental leave, employee assistance program and paid time off offerings depending on the country where you work. Salary offered will vary depending on your location, job-related skills, knowledge, and experience. Additionally, all Zebra roles are eligible for cash incentive programs. For example, sales roles have additional opportunity to earn substantial variable compensation tied to quota achievement. In most other roles, the Zebra annual cash incentive program links Company and individual performance together. Some roles may also be eligible for long-term incentive equity awards. Benefits: We understand the importance of work-life balance and wellbeing, which is why we offer flexibility for our teams including: hybrid work, adaptable hours, Summer Flex Fridays, Focus Fridays, and an annual companywide well-being day to promote revitalization and success. Job Posting Statement: To protect candidates from falling victim to online fraudulent activity involving fake job postings and employment offers, please be aware our recruiters will always connect with you via @zebra.com email accounts. Applications are only accepted through our applicant tracking system and only accept personal identifying information through that system. Our Talent Acquisition team will not ask for you to provide personal identifying information via e-mail or outside of the system. If you are a victim of identity theft contact your local police department. AI Technology Statement: Zebra Technologies leverages AI technology to evaluate job applications using objective, job-relevant criteria. This approach enhances efficiency and promotes fairness in the hiring process. However, every decision regarding interviews and hiring is made by our dedicated team, because we believe people make the best decisions about people. For more on how we use technology in hiring and how we process applicant data, see our Zebra Privacy Policy .