Robotics AI Engineer Sr. Staff/Principal Engineer – Embodied AI/Vision Language Action Models

Qualcomm

Quick summary

Work type: On-site
Location: San Diego, CA · Santa Clara, CA
Salary: $200,800–$301,200 / yr
Posted: 19 days ago
Closes: Nov 14, 2026

Market check

Salary context

Above market

How this pay compares to similar roles

Similar $220k

This role $251k

$173k most similar roles pay here $315k

This role pays more than 74% of similar roles. Most pay $186,565–$253,668 — the shaded band above. At the midpoint, this role pays about $251k versus about $220k for comparable roles.

Based on 240 similar postings.

Employer

About Qualcomm

Qualcomm is a leading American semiconductor and telecommunications company based in San Diego, CA.

Qualcomm currently has 558 open roles on FindRole.

Listed pay typically runs $154,000–$231,000 across 401 roles with salary data.

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At a glance

TL;DR · Robotics AI Engineer Sr. Staff/Principal Engineer – Embodied AI/Vision Language Action Models

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As a Robotics AI Engineer at Qualcomm Technologies, you will join the cutting-edge Qualcomm Robotics team to develop next-generation Vision Language Action (VLA) models that enable robots to understand and interact with their environment through natural language instructions and complex tasks. Your daily responsibilities include researching trends in robotics AI and multimodal learning, designing and developing vision-language-action models, building training pipelines and datasets, optimizing models for real-time on-device performance, and collaborating with cross-functional teams to integrate these capabilities into Qualcomm’s Robotics SDK and partner solutions. The ideal candidate has a strong background in deep learning, proficiency in Python and frameworks like PyTorch or TensorFlow, familiarity with robotics systems such as ROS 2, and experience with model optimization and deployment on edge platforms. This role offers the opportunity to work on advanced hardware and simulation tools while contributing to groundbreaking research that bridges theory and practical application in intelligent robotics.

Skills

Python PyTorch TensorFlow deep learning robotics AI multimodal models ROS 2 model optimization embedded platforms vision-language models policy learning dataset curation simulation-to-real transfer model compression quantization distillation

What you'll do

Research trends in robotics AI and multimodal learning for Qualcomm's VLA roadmap.
Design models connecting vision, language, and action for real-world robotic applications.
Build and maintain training pipelines and datasets for embodied AI systems.
Optimize and deploy models on Qualcomm’s robotics platforms for real-time performance.
Contribute to internal knowledge sharing and publish findings in top AI venues.

What we're looking for

Bachelor's degree in a relevant field with 8+ years of experience or higher education equivalent.
Strong background in deep learning and robotics AI, including transformers and multimodal models.
Proficiency in Python and familiarity with PyTorch or TensorFlow frameworks.
Experience in model optimization and deployment on edge or embedded platforms.
Knowledge of robotics systems, simulation environments, and ROS 2.

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