Research Engineer - Audio Data Collection

At Meta’s Reality Labs Research, our goal is to make world-class consumer virtual, augmented, and mixed reality experiences. Come work alongside industry-leading scientists and engineers to create the technology that makes VR and AR pervasive and universal. Join the adventure of a lifetime as we make science fiction real and change the world. We are a world-class team of researchers and engineers creating the future of augmented and virtual reality, which together will become as universal and essential as smartphones and personal computers are today. And just as personal computers have done over the past 45 years, AR and VR will ultimately change everything about how we work, play, and connect.

We are developing all the technologies needed to enable breakthrough Smartglasses, AR glasses and VR headsets, including optics and displays, computer vision, audio, graphics, brain-computer interfaces, haptic interaction, eye/hand/face/body tracking, perception science, and true telepresence. Some of those will advance much faster than others, but they all need to happen to enable AR and VR that are so compelling that they become an integral part of our lives.

The Audio team at Meta Reality Labs is looking for a Research Engineer to lead on large-scale data collection, processing and management activities to enable research & development of audio AR & VR technologies. You will be supporting on-site data collection activities and building tooling for data processing and management as needed. You will be providing technical direction for others on the team and working closely with researchers and engineers building novel computational & machine learning systems.Research Engineer - Audio Data Collection Responsibilities

• Ownership and leadership on design, setup and maintenance of data collection systems, solving unique engineering challenges in developing complex multi-modal systems used in large-scale human-oriented data collection.
• Working with researchers to understand data needs and propose solutions to these needs.
• Working with project and program managers to prioritize, scope, estimate and deliver work.
• Working with other engineers on the design and implementation of tooling for data processing, visualization and management.
• Influencing the team-wide strategy for data collection and associated ML system and model training and evaluation with innovative engineering approaches to meet varied and evolving needs.
• Data analysis with great attention to detail to identify future data quality improvements.
• Learning constantly, diving into new areas with unfamiliar technologies, and embracing the ambiguity of AR/VR problem solving.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science or a related field.
• 6+ years of experience in the design, development, integration and testing of systems featuring hardware and software.
• 3+ years experience with Python.
• 2+ years experience of providing technical leadership, setting direction for other engineers.
• Experience working with audio.
• Experience with networking and shell scripting.
• Experience with interpersonal skills working effectively across groups and disciplines.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with large data collection systems and datasets for machine learning, including capturing, processing, annotating and storage.
• Experience with audio signal processing and acoustic datasets.
• Experience with early stage research and rapid prototyping.
• Understanding of visual and other sensors (e.g. motion capture and IMU), with experience in sensor and camera calibration.
• Understanding of 3D mathematics, applied linear algebra and applied statistics.

For those who live in or expect to work from California if hired for this position, please click here for additional information. About Meta Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology. People who choose to build their careers by building with us at Meta help shape a future that will take us beyond what digital connection makes possible today—beyond the constraints of screens, the limits of distance, and even the rules of physics.
$170,000/year to $240,000/year + bonus + equity + benefits

Individual compensation is determined by skills, qualifications, experience, and location. Compensation details listed in this posting reflect the base hourly rate, monthly rate, or annual salary only, and do not include bonus, equity or sales incentives, if applicable. In addition to base compensation, Meta offers benefits. Learn more about benefits at Meta.

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