About us

The Machine Learning Research Lab at Volkswagen AG, located in Munich, conducts fundamental research in the areas of machine learning, optimal control and robotics. Our goal is to generate knowledge and drive innovation at Volkswagen AG. Similar to a university research institute we publish articles at conferences and release software as open source. This outreach connects us with the international community of scientists, advances the state of art and increases the visibility of the corporation. In particular our research is focused on developing new algorithms for time series modelling and their usage for controlling dynamical systems. As a final validation step we demonstrate these algorithms on real robotic platforms. For this purpose we also provide a robotics lab, equipped with robotics arms, motion capture systems, additional sensors, an electronics Lab and 3D printers and many more robots to come.

The lab runs its own GPU cluster with ample compute power, with the necessary abstraction layers.

Furthermore, we collaborate with other departments in Volkswagen Group who want to use our methodologies in their processes.

Job description

Part of your work will be:

• Advancing the state of the art of machine learning through research planning, development and publication as part of your dissertation.
• Mathematical development and implementation of machine-learning algorithms for time-series modelling or decision making.

The specific topic of the dissertation will be jointly defined. Your topic will be related to one or multiple of the following core themes of our lab:

1. Sequence modelling
   • Approximate Bayesian inference
   • Integration of a physics prior
   • Unifying control and model learning
2. Spatial Reasoning
   • Integrating prior knowledge of spatial environments
3. Model-Based Control
   • Model-based reinforcement learning
   • Tackling dynamic environments with meta-reinforcement learning
   • Sample efficient (and safe) exploration

Required Qualifications

• completed studies, ideally in the field of machine learning, statistics, robotics or control theory
• affinity for mathematics
• excellent communication and presentation skills, in English language (and not fearing German helps your path in Volkswagen)
• excellent programming skills; proficiency in python and major libraries
• high self-initiative
• ability to work in teams, such as taking and providing constructive criticism, growing and helping others grow

If you are interested in this position, please register at the job posting below before June 22th. We plan to conduct the interviews on June 29th.