Applied Research Software Engineer

Summary You are a technical leader with a demonstrated track record of identifying the right problems, taking calculated risks, and shipping at scale. The candidate will be a core contributor on an interdisciplinary team of specialized researchers and engineers focused on emerging technologies. As an Applied Research Software Engineer on this team, you will be responsible for leading end-to-end incubations from early ideation to deployment, applying state-of-the-art ML research, algorithmic innovation, and agentic systems to challenges with both immediate and long-term impact. You bring deep intellectual curiosity, the ability to operate at the frontier of new technologies, and excellent communication skills to align company leaders and cross-functional collaborators alike.

Description The work is hands-on, highly cross-disciplinary, and central to shaping how Apple’s intelligent systems evolve. You’ll be working on the pipeline between research and product that unlocks the kinds of the delightful user experiences Apple is known for, iteratively crafting ideas that turn science fiction into reality. You care deeply about the process of applied scientific research, enjoy supporting technology investigations, and are comfortable jumping across multiple layers of the productization process when the team calls on you, from prototype through shipping. This is not a typical ML engineering role where you will be responsible for an existing system in a large team: instead, the work is equal parts interdisciplinary pathfinding and helping realize your projects as critical features of Apple’s next-gen products.

Responsibilities

• Invent and integrate ideas into compelling research experiments & demos and follow through with productization efforts including on-device implementation, performance optimization and analysis, API specification, and model architecture and training at scale.
• Work cross-functionally to wire up new systems & APIs and tackle tricky bugs along the way. You will prioritize building systems that support deterministic, reproducible, and analyzable execution.
• Participate in and lead architecture and design reviews, setting high standards for clarity, reliability, and maintainability. You are an experienced and responsible pilot for AI coding agents.
• Design and support data collection systems that enable user studies, annotation and labeling pipelines, and research workflows.

Minimum Qualifications Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Computer Science or adjacent technical field 6+ years of engineering experience building and maintaining data-intensive systems - including feature pipelines, training infrastructure, or evaluation frameworks. Strong proficiency in both Python and C++ with experience in complex, multi-language systems. Expertise in deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch. Familiarity with SOTA ML approaches (VLMs, diffusion models, RL, etc.)

Preferred Qualifications Close to the frontier. You’re the person your friends come to when a new model drops or a new research paper emerges as state-of-the-art. Experience with a specialty discipline such as robotics & machine perception, computer vision, graphics, or simulation. An interest in contextual, personalized computing and the supporting principles of cognitive science and psychology. A strong point of view on where human-AI interaction is headed - and a drive to be a leading part of creating ethical, privacy-centric products. Experience with real-time or near-real-time systems and deeply integrated architectures that span local SoCs through cloud compute. Familiarity with hardware bring-up, data communication protocols, or sensor integration.

Pay & Benefits At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $184,700 and $324,800, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses - including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits

Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.

EEO Statement Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant

Accessibility At Apple, we believe accessibility is a fundamental human right. You’ll find that idea reflected in everything here - in our culture, our benefits and our digital tools. By welcoming as many perspectives as possible, we help you build a career where you feel like you belong.

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Application Deadline Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.