As a Principal Research Engineer at Microsoft, you will lead transformative AI initiatives that shape the future of Microsoft’s products and services. You will set the technical direction for foundational models and multi-agent systems, driving innovation and delivering scalable AI solutions. This role requires collaboration across teams and mentoring engineers while influencing product strategy. You will also represent Microsoft in the global research community, ensuring responsible AI practices are upheld.

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
• Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements.
• 10+ years in applied AI/ML research and product engineering, or a Master's Degree with 5 years of experience, or a PhD with 2 years of experience.

• Architect and deliver AI systems across model development, data, infrastructure, evaluation, and deployment spanning multiple product lines.
• Set technical direction for large programs and drive alignment across Research, Engineering, and Product.
• Drive original research and thought leadership, converting insights into shipped capabilities.
• Broker collaborations across Microsoft Research, product engineering, and external partners.
• Establish fairness, privacy, and safety in the design, data, training, evaluation, deployment, and monitoring of AI systems.

• Employees at Microsoft are often offered comprehensive, “world-class” benefits—including health and mental-wellness programs, competitive pay with bonuses and stock awards, and retirement/savings options. Time-off and flexibility are common, with generous vacation and holidays, parental and caregiver leave, and flexible work schedules, alongside learning support, employee resource groups, product discounts, and matching-gifts/volunteering programs. Specific benefits can vary by region.