Also called: Research Engineer (Machine Learning), ML Research Engineer, Member of Technical Staff (AI)
Builds the code, training runs and experiments that turn AI researchers' ideas into working models.
You launch a training run on thousands of chips, watch the loss curves, and debug why one run crashed overnight. Then you pair with a research scientist to test a new idea on a small model before scaling it up.
Estimate; BLS computer and information research scientists earn $140,300 median (May 2025), and leading AI labs pay much more, often in stock.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in computer science or math; many have a master's or PhD, but strong engineers are hired without one.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Computer Science, Mathematics, Electrical Engineering.
Growing much faster than average (about 22% over 10 years). BLS projects +22% for computer and information research scientists, 2025-35; AI lab hiring swings with funding.
Medium risk for 10 years. AI coding agents write more of the code, squeezing junior roles; running big experiments and judging results stay human.
Classes: AP Calculus, AP Computer Science A, AP Physics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 15-1221.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.