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Research Engineer (VLM / Multimodal AI) 📍 Mountain View, CA I am seeking a Research Engineer to join a venture-backed AI and robotics startup building an AI-powered observability platform for critical infrastructure. This is an opportunity to work on cutting-edge multimodal AI systems that combine language, vision, agentic reasoning, and robotics to monitor and manage some of the world's largest physical environments, including data centers, solar farms, wind farms, and oil refineries. The company has already deployed its technology with customers, recently secured FAA approval for autonomous drone operations, and is founded by former Google and Meta robotics engineers with multiple successful exits valued at over $450M combined. What You'll Do: Build multimodal AI systems combining language models, vision models, and agentic reasoning Develop VLMs and multimodal agents capable of understanding, analyzing, and acting on complex real-world data Design systems that allow users to interact naturally with fleets of autonomous robots Work on large-scale reasoning systems that analyze historical incidents, identify faults, and recommend corrective actions Build infrastructure for grounding language models in visual observations from drones and robotic platforms Develop retrieval, memory, and decision-making systems for mission-critical environments Collaborate closely with robotics and autonomy engineers to bridge perception, reasoning, and execution Help shape the future architecture of a rapidly evolving AI platform operating in the physical world What We're Looking For: Experience working with Vision Language Models (VLMs), multimodal foundation models, or Vision Language Action (VLA) systems Strong background in machine learning, deep learning, or applied AI research Experience with LLMs, agentic systems, retrieval, or multimodal reasoning Exposure to computer vision, perception, robotics, autonomy, or embodied AI is highly desirable Strong software engineering skills with the ability to build production-grade AI systems Experience taking research concepts into real-world applications Ability to thrive in highly autonomous, fast-moving startup environments This role sits at the intersection of some of the most exciting areas in AI today: multimodal models, agentic systems, robotics, and real-world deployment. You'll help build an intelligent platform capable of identifying faults across infrastructure the size of small cities, analyzing historical and live operational data, coordinating robotic inspections, and guiding human operators towards the fastest and most effective resolution. If you'd like to find out more, apply today! Ethan Lewis elewis@acceler8talent.com
Here's how to pick the right one and stand out in your application.
144.883Jobs
31.687IN
81%EN
That number is real. WorkMundi's database shows 144,883 open engineer roles across the world. India has the most with 31,687 jobs, followed by the United States with 30,084. If you just finished reading one job ad and felt paralyzed by choice, you're not alone—but this scale is actually an advantage. It means you can afford to be selective.
Start by geography and language. The majority of engineer ads—117,837 of them—have the job posting text written in English. Use that as one filter, but remember: the ad text language tells you nothing about whether the role actually requires you to speak English day-to-day. Read the job description carefully. Then check which countries have the volume you're targeting. Singapore, Poland, and Australia round out the top five after India and the US.
Next, learn who's hiring. Accenture has posted 2,801 engineer roles. andurilindustries, speechify, and jobgether are also actively recruiting. If you're applying to one of these names, research their hiring patterns and interview style before you apply. That homework pays off.
When you interview, expect the question every engineer hears: 'Tell me about a time you had to debug a problem that wasn't in your job description.' Have a specific story ready—not a general one. Name the tools, the deadline pressure, and what you learned. Hiring managers listen for whether you see problem-solving as part of the role itself, not a favour.