Staff AI Scientist

Company Description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We take our mission of protecting the digital way of life seriously. We are relentless in protecting our customers and we believe that the unique ideas of every member of our team contributes to our collective success. Our values were crowdsourced by employees and are brought to life through each of us everyday - from disruptive innovation and collaboration, to execution. From showing up for each other with integrity to creating an environment where we all feel included.

As a member of our team, you will be shaping the future of cybersecurity. We work fast, value ongoing learning, and we respect each employee as a unique individual. Knowing we all have different needs, our development and personal wellbeing programs are designed to give you choice in how you are supported. This includes our FLEXBenefits wellbeing spending account with over 1,000 eligible items selected by employees, our mental and financial health resources, and our personalized learning opportunities - just to name a few!

At Palo Alto Networks, we believe in the power of collaboration and value in-person interactions. This is why our employees generally work full time from our office with flexibility offered where needed. This setup fosters casual conversations, problem-solving, and trusted relationships. Our goal is to create an environment where we all win with precision.

Job Description

Your Career

As a Staff AI Scientist for Enterprise AI Solutions, you will be a critical technical leader responsible for the hands-on design, development, and implementation of AI-powered solutions that solve challenging business problems across IT and various enterprise functions (Sales, Marketing, Finance, HR, Legal, etc.). You will work closely with Principal and Distinguished Architects to translate high-level strategies into concrete AI solution designs and robust, scalable, and ethical implementations. This role demands deep technical expertise, a strong ability to solve complex problems, and a commitment to mentoring other engineers, leveraging our Enterprise AI Platform to deliver measurable business impact

Your Impact

• AI Solution Implementation: Lead the design and implementation of AI solutions, translating business problems into AI designs, and managing model selection, data requirements, and integration for AI applications.
• Platform Development: Develop and implement core components of the enterprise AI/ML platform, ensuring scalability and security. Contribute to the lifecycle of traditional and Generative AI model deployment and real-time inference systems.
• System Optimization: Design and optimize large-scale AI/ML systems for performance, reliability, and developer-friendliness, focusing on low latency and high throughput in real-time AI applications.
• Technology Adoption: Evaluate and integrate new AI tools, frameworks, and cloud solutions, aligning with architectural guidelines. Lead POCs for emerging AI innovations.
• Architectural Best Practices: Champion design standards and best practices for AI systems, guiding junior engineers.
• Technical Leadership: Mentor AI/ML engineers, lead design discussions, and perform code reviews, fostering engineering excellence.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Data Scientists, ML Engineers, Product Managers, and IT stakeholders to develop production-grade AI solutions.
• Responsible AI & Quality: Ensure AI systems comply with responsible AI principles and security policies. Implement automated testing and monitoring.
• Innovation & Research: Apply cutting-edge AI/ML techniques to solve problems and improve solutions, staying updated on advancements in Generative AI and LLMs.

Qualifications

Your Experience

• 8+ years in software engineering, with 5+ years in Data science/AI/ML experience.
• Experience deploying enterprise AI/ML systems.
• Understanding of the AI lifecycle.
• Experience with distributed systems and streaming data.
• Hands-on experience with Generative AI and LLMs.

• Excellent Communication Skills.

• Proficiency in AI/ML frameworks and cloud platforms.
• Strong programming skills (Python and  C++).
• Masters/Bachelors degree in Computer Science or related field.
• PhD degree in Computer Science , Applied Mathematics ,  Machine Learning or related computation field.
• Experience with open-source AI projects.
• Prior technical lead role for AI/ML projects.
• Familiarity with cybersecurity principles for AI.
• What we are looking for?

Preferred Qualifications:

• Deep Technical Expertise: Strong foundation in machine learning (theory and application), deep learning, statistical modeling, and relevant programming languages (Python, R) and libraries (TensorFlow, PyTorch, scikit-learn).
• Proven Research & Innovation: Track record of conceiving and executing novel research, publishing in top-tier conferences/journals, or delivering innovative AI solutions with significant business impact.
• System Design & Scalability: Ability to design, build, and deploy scalable and robust AI systems. Understanding of MLOps and data engineering principles.
• Problem Solving & Critical Thinking: Excellent analytical skills to tackle complex, ambiguous problems and break them down into manageable parts.
• Leadership & Mentorship: Experience in leading projects, guiding junior team members, and influencing technical direction.
• Communication & Collaboration: Ability to clearly communicate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences (technical and non-technical) and collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams.
• Business Acumen & Impact Focus: Understanding of how AI can drive business value and ability to translate research/technical work into tangible outcomes.
• Continuous Learning: Passion for staying up-to-date with the latest advancements in AI.

Additional Information

The Team

Working at a high-tech cybersecurity company within Information Technology is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You’ll join the brightest minds in technology, creating, building, and supporting tools and enabling our global teams on the front line of defense against cyberattacks.

We’re connected by one mission but driven by the impact of that mission and what it means to protect our way of life in the digital age. Join a dynamic and fast-paced team of people who feel excited by the prospect of a challenge and feel a thrill at resolving technical gaps that inhibit productivity.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non-sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/commissioned roles) is expected to be between $0 - $0/YR. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

• Our Commitment
• We’re problem solvers that take risks and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at  accommodations@paloaltonetworks.com.

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.