The role
From Amazon's own posting.
We are seeking a Senior Applied Scientist to join the Alexa Availability team within Alexa Excellence. This role leads the research and development of machine learning and statistical models that power Alexa's reliability at massive scale — serving hundreds of millions of customers globally.
The ideal candidate will tackle complex, ambiguous problems spanning time series multivariate modeling, statistical anomaly detection, LLM-based operational intelligence, and adaptive threshold systems. They will design production-grade ML solutions, establish rigorous evaluation frameworks, and ensure AI systems are grounded, reliable, and free from systematic bias — leveraging techniques such as RAG, confidence scoring, knowledge graph integration, and counterfactual testing.
This scientist will partner with engineers, product managers, and operations leaders to translate scientific innovation into production systems that directly impact Alexa's availability worldwide. They will drive the scientific agenda for the team, mentor fellow scientists, and influence the broader Alexa Excellence organization through technical leadership and cross-team collaboration.
Key Focus Areas:
Anomaly detection and predictive failure modeling
Cross-service correlation and LLM-driven operational intelligence
Production ML at the intersection of large-scale distributed systems and applied science
Model reliability, hallucination mitigation, and grounding for operational AI
Key job responsibilities
As a Senior Applied Scientist on the Alexa Availability team, you will lead the research and development of machine learning and statistical models that power Alexa's reliability at scale. You will work on some of the most complex and ambiguous problems in the space — from time series multivariate modeling and statistical anomaly detection to LLM-based operational intelligence and adaptive threshold systems.
A day in the life
You will design and implement production-grade ML solutions, establish rigorous model evaluation frameworks, and ensure our LLM-powered systems are grounded, reliable, and free from systematic bias. You will apply techniques such as Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), confidence scoring, knowledge graph integration, and counterfactual testing to ensure our AI systems make trustworthy operational decisions at scale.
You will partner closely with software engineers, product managers, and operations leaders to translate scientific innovation into production systems that directly impact Alexa's availability for customers worldwide. You will drive the scientific agenda for your team, mentor fellow scientists, and influence the broader Alexa Excellence organization through your technical leadership and cross-team collaboration.
About the team
The Alexa Excellence team is at the heart of delivering a world-class Alexa experience to hundreds of millions of customers globally. Within Alexa Excellence, the Alexa Availability team is responsible for ensuring Alexa is always on, always responsive, and always reliable. We own the systems, signals, and science that detect, diagnose, and drive resolution of availability issues at scale — before customers ever notice.
We are building the next generation of intelligent availability solutions powered by machine learning, large language models, and advanced statistical modeling. Our work spans anomaly detection, predictive failure modeling, cross-service correlation, and LLM-driven operational intelligence — all operating at the scale and reliability bar that Alexa demands. We operate at the intersection of large-scale distributed systems, applied machine learning, and operational excellence, and we are looking for scientists who can bring both deep technical rigor and a bias for production impact.
- 3+ years of building machine learning models for business application experience
- PhD, or Master's degree and 6+ years of applied research experience
- Experience programming in Java, C++, Python or related language
- Experience with neural deep learning methods and machine learning
- Experience with modeling tools such as R, scikit-learn, Spark MLLib, MxNet, Tensorflow, numpy, scipy etc.
- Experience with large scale distributed systems such as Hadoop, Spark etc.
Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.
Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include: work safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhere to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicate effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and follow all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, effectively manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and the Company’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits .
USA, CA, Sunnyvale - 192,200.00 - 260,000.00 USD annually
USA, WA, Bellevue - 167,100.00 - 226,100.00 USD annually