Applied Scientist II

At Microsoft, we understand the importance of breaking down language barriers to better serve our global customers. Our Experiences and Devices Engineering team is fully committed to this mission and our critical role in modernizing localization and internationalization platforms. Our goal is to empower partners to build products for international markets and enable Microsoft to move faster in delighting billions of customers worldwide. 

The E+D Localization team at Microsoft is seeking a motivated and talented Applied Scientist II to join our team and help build the next generation localization pipeline, including cutting-edge machine translation systems and language quality prediction and estimation models using innovative Deep Learning and Generative AI technologies. 

This position offers an outstanding opportunity to be part of a multi-disciplinary team of Applied Scientist and Software Engineers that enables and empowers Microsoft customers with delightful and world-class experiences, while maintaining a diverse, agile, and supportive team environment. 

As part of the team, you will be building end-to-end ML/AI powered features through their entire life cycle from idea creation and proof-of-concept, through implementation, experimentation and finally to worldwide availability in partnership with our engineering teams.  

The right candidate will have a strong passion for innovation, artificial intelligence, language technology and passion for delighting users through building quality international experiences that leverage the best from cutting-edge research. Experience in leveraging the latest in LLM and generative AI research, including prompt engineering and model fine-tuning, would be a distinct advantage.  

• Investigate, design, prototype, test, validate and deliver machine learning/AI localization features using best in class technologies and frameworks 

• Collaborate with multiple disciplines: Product Managers, Applied Scientists, Software Engineers, and partner teams to deliver and contribute to solutions 

• Leverage Azure services (e.g., Azure ML, Azure DevOps, Azure Data Factory) and develop customized modules to instrument the MLOps practice to monitor, adjust and improve our services 

• Support and manage LLM services, machine learning models, production pipeline, and experimentation platforms 

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Natural Language Processing, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Bioinformatics, or related field, AND advanced relevant professional experience.

  OR

• Master’s degree in Computer Science, Natural Language Processing, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Bioinformatics, or related field, AND proven relevant professional experience.

  OR

• Doctorate in Computer Science, Natural Language Processing, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Bioinformatics, or related field, AND relevant professional experience

• Significant hands-on experience in AI/Machine Learning/Deep Learning, particularly in developing and deploying Natural Language Processing (NLP) solutions. Exposure to multilingual challenges is considered a strong advantage
• Expertise in widely used ML frameworks and libraries such as Scikit-learn, PyTorch/TensorFlow, and Azure ML.
• Ability to translate research into scalable industry solutions, prioritising practical implementation and innovation over purely theoretical approaches.

• Fluency with recent NLP & ML advancements e.g. large language models, as well as a driven passion for discovering the next generation of technology .
• Experience working on Machine Translation or language-related tasks would offer a distinct advantage  
• Research experience in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence, especially applied to Natural Language problems, would be highly valued 
• Excellent knowledge of experimental design and evaluation 
• Experience working in a technical problem domain (plan, design, execution, continuous release, and service operation) and brining cutting-edge research ideas into production 
• Proven track record of shipping Machine Learning/AI features 
• Proficiency with data engineering, working with large data sets (structured and unstructured), relational databases, database-design and ELT 
• Excellent communication skills, inter-personal & collaboration skills 

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request via the Accommodation request form.

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.

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