Senior Applied Scientist - Fluent Hub team, Office Product Group

Overview

Come work at the intersection of UX and AI! Our group builds the Fluent User Interface (UI) React libraries (https://github.com/microsoft/fluentui); the user experience (UX) primitives, theming system, and composed UX controls that power most Microsoft 365 web applications such as Office, Teams, Outlook, and M365 Copilot. Our mission is to accelerate the development of highly crafted, performant, accessible, and delightful experiences across all M365 applications through building on shared systems.   

Over the past year, we’ve expanded our focus to apply new foundational Large Language Models (LLMs) to accelerate development and improve the quality of our application UX. We’ve built an initial solution that’s now in testing. In parallel, we’re exploring the emerging space of generative UX, where products create interfaces that respond intelligently to the evolving needs of our users. 

We are looking for a Senior Applied Scientist to join our team to help shape this new frontier. In this role, you’ll work closely with designers and engineers to improve how foundational models can support both developer productivity and adaptive user experiences. Your responsibilities will include prompt engineering, fine-tuning LLMs, designing and managing evaluation datasets, and assessing different architectures and approaches. You’ll play a key role in building reliable, measurable systems that bridge cutting-edge AI with real-world UX scenarios across M365 through the Fluent design system. 

If you're excited about advancing applied AI and making a tangible impact on how developers build with Fluent, we’d love to hear from you. 

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond. 

Responsibilities

• Conduct analysis to evaluate the performance of model configurations, create and manage evaluation datasets, identify areas for improvement, and iterate 
• Explore the emerging space of generative UX by partnering with product teams and researchers to understand what is possible, identify high-impact opportunities, and translate research into practical, user-facing solutions. 
• Collaborate with teams to develop an understanding of the state-of-the-art tools, technologies, and methods being used in the researcher community and product groups.  
• Foster a healthy and inclusive team environment, collaborating effectively across Design, Engineering, Product, and Applied Science across Microsoft 365 products. 
• Embody our culture and values 

Qualifications

Required Qualifications: 

• Bachelor's Degree in Statistics, Econometrics, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field AND 4+ years related experience (e.g., statistics predictive analytics, research) 
  • OR Master's Degree in Statistics, Econometrics, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field AND 3+ years related experience (e.g., statistics, predictive analytics, research)
  • Doctorate in Statistics, Econometrics, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field AND 1+ year(s) related experience (e.g., statistics, predictive analytics, research)
  • OR equivalent experience. 

• 2+ years' experience with transformer-based models (e.g., GPT, Llama).  
• 3+ years' experience with Python and relevant ML libraries (e.g., PyTorch).  
• 3+ years of experience in software development.  

Other Requirements:

Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings: 

• Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter. 

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Master's Degree in Statistics, Econometrics, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field AND 6+ years related experience (e.g., statistics, predictive analytics, research)
  • OR Doctorate in Statistics, Econometrics, Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field AND 3+ years related experience (e.g., statistics, predictive analytics, research)
  • OR equivalent experience. 
• 3+ years' experience with transformer-based models (e.g., GPT, Llama).  
• 4+ years experience with Python and relevant ML libraries (e.g., PyTorch).   
• 4+ years of industry experience in software development. 
• 4+ years' experience in implementing, training, and debugging transformer-based ML models and other related tools and technologies for building and shipping large language models (LLM) applications.    

Applied Sciences IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $119,800 - $234,700 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $158,400 - $258,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

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Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.