Six Figure Work

Sr. Applied Scientist, Frontier AI Assets

Amazon

Company websiteamazon.com (Amazon, opens in new tab)

Base salary $192,200  to $260,000

Employer-published annual base salary, USD. Advertised base range in Sunnyvale, CA

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  • LocationSunnyvale, CA
  • WorkplaceWorkplace not stated
  • Status at last checkSource accepting applications when checked
  • Last checked (5 h ago) · observed since

About this job

The Foundational AI (FAI) team is looking for a passionate, talented, and inventive Applied Scientist with a strong deep learning background, to build industry-leading Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) technology with Large Language Models (LLMs).

Key job responsibilities

As an Applied Scientist with the FAI team, you will support the development of RL Gyms, assess their usefulness for the frontier model advancement and build techniques to advance the state of the art with LLMs. You will support the foundational model development in an applied research role. Your work will directly impact our customers in the form of products and services that make use of GenAI technology. You will leverage Amazon’s heterogeneous data sources and large-scale computing resources to accelerate advances in LLMs.

A day in the life

You start your morning reviewing experimental results from a model training run you kicked off the previous afternoon, analyzing metrics and refining your approach. By mid-morning, you are whiteboarding a new algorithmic design with engineering partners, working through system integration details. After lunch, you lead a science review where you present findings and gather feedback from peers. Later, you pair with a junior scientist to debug a data pipeline issue, turning it into a coaching moment. Your day wraps up drafting a section of a research paper capturing your team's latest results.

About the team

The FAI team has a mission to push the envelope in GenAI with LLMs, in order to provide the best-possible experience for our customers.

Basic Qualifications

  • 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

Preferred Qualifications

  • 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.

Pursuant to the San Francisco 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

Source: Amazon · View original posting (opens in new tab)

How this pay compares

Base floor $192,200, above 54% of the 1,729 Data & ML roles in California on this site. The employer's range is $67,800 wide, 35% of the floor. Observed open for 5 days so far (since Nov 3, 2026).

Pay in context

Among 1,729 Data & ML roles in California listed on this site, the median base floor is $184,000 and the middle half runs from $154,000 to $224,000. This role's floor ($192,200) is above 54% of them; 14 others list the same floor.

Base floors of 1,729 Data & ML roles in California

Base floors of 1,729 Data & ML roles in California$100K to $125K: 7.2% (125); $125K to $150K: 11.7% (202); $150K to $175K: 20.1% (347); $175K to $200K: 20.8% (360); $200K to $225K: 15.5% (268); $225K to $250K: 7.2% (124); $250K to $275K: 6.8% (118); $275K and up: 10.7% (185)0%8%16%24%7%10012%12520%15021%17516%2007%2257%25011%275This job $192K
Each bar counts postings on this site by published base floor, in $K. The marker is this job's floor.
Table
Base floors of 1,729 Data & ML roles in California
Floor bandSharePostings
$100K to $125K7.2%125
$125K to $150K11.7%202
$150K to $175K20.1%347
$175K to $200K20.8%360
$200K to $225K15.5%268
$225K to $250K7.2%124
$250K to $275K6.8%118
$275K and up10.7%185
How this is calculated
Statistic
Base floor distribution of the cohort
Formula
count of cohort postings in each $25K band of published base floor / postings in the cohort
Denominator
1,729 open postings with this job family in California
Sample size
1729
Hidden when
the cohort has fewer than 30 postings
Calculation version
jobpage-analysis-v1
Data as of
2026-11-09
Employer set
Open jobs on this site that publish a base salary of $100,000 or more

Only jobs on this site count, and each one publishes a base salary of $100,000 or more, so this compares six-figure jobs with each other, not with the whole market. Computed Nov 9, 2026.

State against nationwide

Median base floor in California vs nationwide

Median published base floor of the same job family, in this state and across all states, next to this job's floor.
Table
Median base floor in California vs nationwide
Valuepostings
Data & ML, California$184K1,729
Data & ML, all states$165K4,586
This job's base floor (marked)$192,200
How this is calculated
Statistic
Median floor, state vs nationwide
Formula
median published base floor of each cohort
Denominator
open postings of this job family
Sample size
1729 in California; 4586 nationwide
Hidden when
either cohort has fewer than 30 postings
Calculation version
jobpage-analysis-v1
Data as of
2026-11-09
Employer set
Open jobs on this site that publish a base salary of $100,000 or more

How Amazon pays

172 of Amazon's 4,075 live roles on this site list a higher base floor and 3,887 list a lower one. Across them the median floor is $143,700; the middle half runs from $131,500 to $159,300.

Base floors of Amazon's 4,075 live roles

Base floors of Amazon's 4,075 live roles$100K to $125K: 17.5% (714); $125K to $150K: 46.3% (1,886); $150K to $175K: 22.5% (918); $175K to $200K: 11.4% (466); $200K to $225K: 1.8% (74); $225K to $250K: 0.2% (7); $250K to $275K: 0.2% (9); $275K and up: <0.1% (1)0%15%30%45%18%10046%12523%15011%1752%200<1%225<1%250<1%275This job $192K
Each bar counts this employer's live roles by published base floor, in $K. The marker is this job's floor.
Table
Base floors of Amazon's 4,075 live roles
Floor bandShareRoles
$100K to $125K17.5%714
$125K to $150K46.3%1,886
$150K to $175K22.5%918
$175K to $200K11.4%466
$200K to $225K1.8%74
$225K to $250K0.2%7
$250K to $275K0.2%9
$275K and up<0.1%1
How this is calculated
Statistic
Employer base floor distribution
Formula
count of the employer's open roles in each $25K band of published base floor / its open roles
Denominator
4,075 open public roles at this employer
Sample size
4075
Hidden when
this employer has fewer than 5 roles
Calculation version
jobpage-analysis-v1
Data as of
current
Employer set
Open jobs on this site that publish a base salary of $100,000 or more

Similar pay elsewhere

Other employers' Data & ML roles in California with the nearest published base floor to $192,200, one per employer.

This range next to 6 other live Amazon roles with the nearest advertised base floor
Chart as a table
This range next to 6 other live Amazon roles with the nearest advertised base floor
RolePublished base
Sr. Applied Scientist, Frontier AI Assets (this listing)$192,200 - $260,000
Senior Technical Program Manager (ADBL176)$189,592 - $201,200
Principal Data Scientist, Prime Video$189,400 - $256,200
Principal Economist, Fulfillment by Amazon$189,400 - $256,200
Principal Data Scientist, AWS Analytics Engineering (AAE)$189,400 - $256,200
Principal Developer Advocate – AWS Trainium, Trainium$188,900 - $330,500
Principal, Corp BD, Corporate Business Development, Corporate Business Development$188,100 - $254,500

Same $100K to $400K scale as every card. All Amazon roles · How to read the bar

Observed changes

No changes to the pay or listing since we first observed this role on Nov 3, 2026 (5 days ago).

  1. First observed on the employer's board, already publishing a qualifying base salary
Observed since
Employer-stated posting date
2026-09-29
Where this pay comes from

Location as the employer wrote it: US, CA, Sunnyvale

USA, CA, Sunnyvale - 192,200.00 - 260,000.00 USD annually

Method
Employer text, read with fixed rules and re-verified
Checked
Rule set
us-base-v2

The pay passage appears in the employer's own job text. Fixed, deterministic rules located it, and the passage below was checked against the stored copy of the posting.

What we verified

  • The pay figures come from the employer's own listing, quoted exactly above.
  • The pay is an annual base salary in US dollars with a minimum of at least $100,000.
  • The role was publicly listed on the employer's job board when last checked.

We do not verify what the employer will actually offer, whether the employer is still recruiting for the role, or anything beyond what the employer published. Full methodology.

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