Applied Scientist, Fauna

Amazon is hiring an Applied Scientist, Fauna in New York, United States. It pays $172k-$223k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Amazon.

Level's read on this job

Builds AI ●●●● is how Level rates this applied scientist role: the job is building AI systems.
Pay on this posting starts in line with the typical applied scientist posting on Level.
The posting mentions Python, Java and C among its tools and skills.
Level classes it as a senior role.
Amazon has 20,000+ other open roles on Level.

AI in this role

Design and implement evaluation frameworks, data collection protocols, and robotic capability testing for machine learning and robotics systems.

PythonJavaC

machine-learningroboticsevaluationdata-collectionhuman-in-the-loop

We are seeking an Applied Scientist to lead the development of evaluation frameworks and data collection protocols for robotic capabilities. In this role, you will focus on designing how we measure, stress-test, and improve robot behavior across a wide range of real-world tasks. Your work will play a critical role in shaping how policies are validated and how high-quality datasets are generated to accelerate system performance.
You will operate at the intersection of robotics, machine learning, and human-in-the-loop systems, building the infrastructure and methodologies that connect teleoperation, evaluation, and learning. This includes developing evaluation policies, defining task structures, and contributing to operator-facing interfaces that enable scalable and reliable data collection.
The ideal candidate is highly experimental, systems-oriented, and comfortable working across software, robotics, and data pipelines, with a strong focus on turning ambiguous capability goals into measurable and actionable evaluation systems.

Key job responsibilities
- Design and implement evaluation frameworks to measure robot capabilities across structured tasks, edge cases, and real-world scenarios
- Develop task definitions, success criteria, and benchmarking methodologies that enable consistent and reproducible evaluation of policies
- Create and refine data collection protocols that generate high-quality, task-relevant datasets aligned with model development needs
- Build and iterate on teleoperation workflows and operator interfaces to support efficient, reliable, and scalable data collection
- Analyze evaluation results and collected data to identify performance gaps, failure modes, and opportunities for targeted data collection
- Collaborate with engineering teams to integrate evaluation tooling, logging systems, and data pipelines into the broader robotics stack
- Stay current with advances in robotics, evaluation methodologies, and human-in-the-loop learning to continuously improve internal approaches
- Lead technical projects from conception through production deployment
- Mentor junior scientists and engineers

Basic qualifications

- 3+ years of building models for business application experience
- PhD, or Master's degree and 4+ years of CS, CE, ML or related field experience
- Experience in patents or publications at top-tier peer-reviewed conferences or journals
- Experience programming in Java, C++, Python or related language
- Experience in any of the following areas: algorithms and data structures, parsing, numerical optimization, data mining, parallel and distributed computing, high-performance computing

Preferred qualifications

- Experience using Unix/Linux
- Experience in professional software development

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, NY, New York - 172,400.00 - 223,400.00 USD annually

How we rate this

Applied Scientist, Fauna at Amazon rates 90 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Builds AI (AI Level 4 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.

Key facts

Applied Scientist, Fauna is an open job at Amazon.
Level rates this role AI Level 4 of 4: Builds AI.
The listed salary is $172k-$223k a year.
The role is based in US, NY, New York.
The job was posted on June 10, 2026.
Seniority: senior.
Applications are handled by Amazon. Apply on Amazon

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

Machine learningRoboticsEvaluationData CollectionHuman In The LoopPythonJavaC

Also common in applied scientist jobs at this level

Deep learning LLM Generative AI NLP Reinforcement learning TensorFlow

Pay

This job starts at: $172k
Typical applied scientist job: $167k

This posting starts close to the typical applied scientist job. See applied scientist jobs

Questions you could be asked

Tell me about a project where machine learning was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where robotics was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where evaluation was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where data collection was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where human in the loop was part of your work. What did you do?

Adapt your resume

List these exact terms on your resume: Machine learning, Robotics, Evaluation, Data Collection, and Human In The Loop. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
Lead with what you built, trained or shipped. This role is judged on the AI system itself, not the tools around it.

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