AIML - Distinguished Engineer, Foundation Models

Cupertino Until 9/22/2026 First posted July 24, 2026 Last posted July 24, 2026
Job description

We build frontier foundation models that power intelligent experiences at Apple. Our team works across the full training lifecycle: including pre-training foundation models, and developing mid-training approaches that bridge general capability and task-specific performance. What makes our work distinct is that we're engineering models specifically for Apple silicon and optimized for experiences that are private, personal, and deeply integrated into the OS. We're solving frontier problems in reward modeling to resist reward hacking, handling sparse and delayed rewards in agentic settings, and aligning models reliably across the spectrum from open-ended creative tasks to precise, action-taking workflows. If you're drawn to hard problems where the research and the product are inseparable, this is the team.

Description

We believe that the most interesting problems in deep learning research arise when we try to apply learning to real-world use cases, and this is also where the most important breakthroughs come from. You will work with a close-knit and fast-growing team of world-class engineers and scientists to tackle some of the most challenging problems in foundation models and deep learning, including natural language processing, multi-modal understanding, and combining learning with knowledge. As a distinguished engineer, you will identify new directions in research or products and land big impacts along these directions and influence the direction of Apple’s AI efforts.

Minimum Qualifications

Demonstrated expertise in deep learning with a publication record in relevant conferences (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, ICCV, ECCV, KDD, ACL, ICASSP, InterSpeech) or a track record in applying deep learning techniques to products
Proficient programming skills in Python and one of the deep learning toolkits such as JAX, PyTorch, or Tensorflow
Ability to work in a collaborative environment

Preferred Qualifications

Web-scale information retrieval
Human-like conversation agent
Multi-modal perception for existing products and future hardware platforms
On-device intelligence and learning with strong privacy protections
PhD, or equivalent practical experience, in Computer Science, or related technical field

About this role

Summary

Work on foundation models, natural language, multi-modal perception, privacy-focused AI at Apple.

Job title

AIML - Distinguished Engineer, Foundation Models

Experience level

senior level

Industry

software

Location requirements

Must be in Cupertino, on-site work required.

Salary

Not specified

Management role

No

Skills & keywords

Required skills

PythonJAXPyTorchdeep learning

Preferred skills

web-scale retrievalhuman-like conversationmulti-modal perceptionon-device intelligence

Specializations

deep learningnatural language processingmulti-modal understandinglearning with knowledge
Locations

Structured locations inferred from the posting.

Cupertino, CA, USA

On-site City