Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with a mission to make it safe and easy for people and things to get where they’re going. Since our start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has been focused on building the World’s Most Experienced Driver in hopes of improving the world's access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. Our Waymo Driver powers Waymo One, our fully autonomous ride-hailing service, as well as Waymo Via, our trucking and local delivery service. To date, Waymo has driven over 20 million miles autonomously on public roads across 25 U.S. cities and conducted over 20 billion miles of simulation testing.
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).
Autonomous driving involves a highly complex stack that leverages state of the art sensors, machine learning, and robotics to create the next-generation technology that will change mobility around the world. If you feel passionately about data and this exciting technology, come join us!
We'd like you to have:
- PhD in statistics, math, physics, or another quantitative research area
- Strong background in statistics, either from academic research or industry experience
- Ability to interpret and work with data in the presence of ambiguity (e.g., confounding factors, data sparsity or quality challenges),
- Advanced statistical programming skills, e.g., in Python or R
- Experience manipulating, visualizing, and interpreting big data
- Willingness, ability, and patience to understand highly complex systems
- Proven track record of excellence in research and solving difficult problems
Besides these core skills, experience in adjacent relevant areas, like advanced machine learning, motion planning, traffic safety evaluation, or software engineering are a plus
Note: The following is only applicable for roles hired in the US. As we keep the safety of our employees and our communities top of mind, COVID-19 vaccinations continue to be a critical prevention measure to help end the pandemic. Because of this, Waymo requires all US-based employees who perform work onsite for Waymo to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. If you are unable to be vaccinated, Waymo will provide a reasonable accommodation consistent with applicable law.