Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Simulation

Waymo
Mountain View, CA · New York, NYData Scientist, Machine Learning Engineer, Software Engineer$251k–$310kPosted Jul 13, 2026

Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Simulation

Mountain View, California, United States | San Francisco, California, United States | New York City, New York, United States Full-Time Software Engineering 5142

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Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Simulation

  • 5142
  • On Site
  • Mountain View, California
  • San Francisco, California
  • New York City, New York
  • Software Engineering
  • Full-Time
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Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the world's most trusted driver. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has focused on building the Waymo Driver—The World's Most Experienced Driver™—to improve access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. The Waymo Driver powers Waymo’s fully autonomous ride-hail service and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over ten million rider-only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving over 100 million miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 15+ U.S. states.

The Driver Understanding and Evaluation team at Waymo develops a rich understanding of Waymo Driver's behavior. With over 1 million driverless miles per week, it is critical that Waymo can understand and assess the behavior of all its vehicles - both in the field and in simulation - with automated algorithms. The learned metrics team is a strategic bet to use machine learning to ensure we can scale to meet Waymo's goals. We collaborate across teams to bring ML to production systems and build what is Waymo's reward function. We build and operate large-scale machine learning and data systems, simulation workflows, and insight tools. We combine expert human judgements and advanced machine learning models to deliver training and evaluation data for the Waymo driver. We are looking for researchers and software engineers who are passionate about developing production grade machine learning systems for our autonomous vehicles and have an incessant drive to improve the performance of our technology stack.

In this hybrid role, you will report to an Engineering Manager 

You will:

  • Report into the TLM for the Learned Metrics Team
  • Develop ML models that assess our autonomous vehicle's behavior.
  • Develop ML infrastructure to support performant models.
  • Collaborate across teams to bring state-of-the-art to production.

You have:

  • BS in Computer Science, Robotics, Statistics, Physics, Math or another quantitative area, or equivalent work experience
  • 5+ years of experience building productionized ML models
  • Code and design skills: comfort building production systems (Python / C++)
  • Background in applied Deep Learning
  • A track record in improving model quality

We prefer:

  • 8+ years of experience building productionized ML models
  • Experience in reinforcement learning, transfer learning, or learning.
  • Experience with large scale data and models

The expected base salary range for this full-time position across US locations is listed below. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the role location or, if the role can be performed remote, the specific salary range for your preferred location, during the hiring process. 

Waymo employees are also eligible to participate in Waymo’s discretionary annual bonus program, equity incentive plan, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements. 

Salary Range $251,000—$310,000 USD

We appreciate your interest in Waymo. Waymo is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, committed to creating a culture of belonging and maintaining a supportive workplace for all employees. We welcome applicants of all backgrounds, and employment decisions are based on a candidate’s qualifications, experience, and alignment with job requirements and business needs. Waymo does not discriminate against, and prohibits harassment of, any applicant or employee based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, age, disability, military status, family status, pregnancy, genetic information or any other basis protected by applicable law. Waymo will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal records in accordance with applicable law. Waymo is committed to making sure our hiring process is accessible for all candidates. If you need assistance applying for a role or participating in the interview process due to a disability, please let the recruiting team know or email waymo-candidatesupport@google.com. (This email address is intended to be used only for requesting accommodations as part of the application process. Other inquiries will not receive a response.)

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Some of our Benefits

Health and wellness

Our people are at the heart of everything we do. At Waymo, you can enjoy top-notch medical, dental and vision insurance, mental wellness support, gym membership, and special wellness programs.

Financial wellness

Your financial peace of mind is important to us. At Waymo, we offer competitive compensation, bonus opportunities, equity, employees provident fund, and lots of other perks and employee discounts.

Flexibility and time off

Take the time you need to relax and recharge. Enjoy the flexibility to work from another location for four weeks per year. We support an on-site or hybrid work model and offer remote working opportunities, paid time off, bereavement, sick, and parental leave.

Supporting families

When it comes to growing your family or caring for your loved ones, you have our full support. Enhanced leave options include 26 weeks of paid leave for birthing parents and 18 weeks of paid leave for non-birthing parents.

Community and personal development

At Waymo, you'll find a range of opportunities to grow, connect, and give back. We offer education reimbursement, personal and professional development, mentorship, and other ways to connect through Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), other internal groups, and even time off to volunteer.

Cool perks

Access to Google offices, cafes, wellness centers, massages, and so much more. To support your wellbeing at home, you can enjoy at-home fitness and cooking classes, and more.

Health and wellness

Our people are at the heart of everything we do. At Waymo, you can enjoy top-notch medical, dental and vision insurance, mental wellness support, gym membership, and special wellness programs.

Financial wellness

Your financial peace of mind is important to us. At Waymo, we offer competitive compensation, bonus opportunities, equity, employees provident fund, and lots of other perks and employee discounts.

Flexibility and time off

Take the time you need to relax and recharge. Enjoy the flexibility to work from another location for four weeks per year. We support an on-site or hybrid work model and offer remote working opportunities, paid time off, bereavement, sick, and parental leave. 

Supporting families

When it comes to growing your family or caring for your loved ones, you have our full support. Enhanced leave options include 26 weeks of paid leave for birthing parents and 18 weeks of paid leave for non-birthing parents.

Community and personal development

At Waymo, you'll find a range of opportunities to grow, connect, and give back. We offer education reimbursement, personal and professional development, mentorship, and other ways to connect through Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), other internal groups, and even time off to volunteer.

Cool perks

Access to Google offices, cafes, wellness centers, massages, and so much more. To support your wellbeing at home, you can enjoy at-home fitness and cooking classes, and more.

Learn more

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