Senior Data Scientist

Mountain View, CA, United States

Senior Data Scientist Mountain View, California, United States Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the 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 One, a fully autonomous ride-hailing service, and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over one million rider-only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving tens of millions of miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 13+ U.S. states.

Data, machine learning, and statistical models play a critical role in building the Waymo Driver and in evaluating its performance. Waymo data scientists work closely with engineering and ensure high-quality reasoning and validation about data and models in our production systems. We help our partner teams interpret data in the face of statistical uncertainty, data ambiguity, and systematic biases - for example in the causal interpretation of observational data. We also develop metrics and experimental designs that capture key performance aspects of our autonomous systems. Examples of areas the data science team is deeply involved in include safety readiness evaluation, development of signals to characterize good driving, evaluation of ML models in production systems, and simulation technology (virtual driving).

As a Senior Data Scientist at Waymo, you'll play a critical role in ensuring the safety and reliability of autonomous vehicles. Your responsibilities will span the entire spectrum of data analysis, model development, and evaluation. While each day at Waymo is different, your primary responsibilities will include:

Develop evaluation frameworks that are critical to ML model improvements.

Design and implement robust data analysis pipelines and validation frameworks.

Develop and apply statistical methods and ML models to analyze historical/simulation data

Collaborate with cross-functional teams like Simulation and Planning to ensure consistent results across the autonomous driving system.

At a minimum we'd like you to have:

PhD in a quantitative field (IE Statistics, Mathematics, Physics)

3+ years of industry experience solving large-scale complex problems

Proven expertise using advanced statistical methods (e.g., ML models, hypothesis testing, causal analysis)

Ability to interpret and work with data in the presence of ambiguity (e.g., confounding factors, data sparsity or quality challenges)

Demonstrated knowledge of Python/SQL/R data analysis libraries and packages

Ability to take ambiguous and complex business requirements and propose a technical solution

It's preferred if you also have:

Experience solving problems related to Autonomous Driving

Experience in adjacent relevant areas like Advanced Machine Learning (Deep Learning and Diffusion models), Traffic Modeling, Safety Evaluation or Prediction

Hands-on experience with Google infra tools like PLX, Borg, GCL, etc

While at Waymo, you will enjoy benefits that cover...

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, a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), a Health Saving Account (HSA), and special wellness programs.

Financial wellness: Your financial peace of mind is important to us. At Waymo, we offer competitive compensation, bonus opportunities, equity, a generous 401(k) plan, 1-on-1 financial coaching, a 529 College Savings Plan 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 paid parental leave (birthing parent gets 24 weeks of paid leave with up to 4 weeks of additional leave before their due date, and non-birthing parent gets 18 weeks of paid leave), and 20 days of subsidized backup childcare or adult/elder care.. Access to fertility care or adoption support as you grow your family.

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.

#li-hybrid

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 $192,000-$243,000 USD We appreciate your interest in Waymo. Waymo is an equal employment opportunity employer, committed to maintaining a supportive and inclusive workplace for all employees. 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, 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 ensuring equal opportunity for qualified individuals with disabilities. If you are an individual with a disability and require an accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, please let the recruiting team know or email [email protected]. (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.)