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Software Engineer Research Assistant Jobs (NOW HIRING)

HX5 LLC

Research Software Engineer

Houston, TX · On-site

$195K/yr

Research Software Engineer Engineer III ADV000CPX NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, Texas HX5 is ... assistants, and a firm, proven knowledge of software development lifecycles. * Experience ...

HX5, LLC

Research Software Engineer

Houston, TX · On-site

$195K/yr

HX5, LLC is an award-winning provider of engineering, research and development, and technical ... assistants, and a firm, proven knowledge of software development lifecycles. • Experience ...

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How much do software engineer research assistant jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 17, 2026, the average yearly pay for software engineer research assistant in the United States is $88,754.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $70,500.00 and $104,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Software Engineer Research Assistant, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Software Engineer Research Assistant, you need a solid background in computer science fundamentals, programming languages such as Python or Java, and a related degree or ongoing coursework. Familiarity with version control systems like Git, data analysis libraries, and research tools such as MATLAB or TensorFlow is typically required. Strong analytical thinking, attention to detail, and effective communication skills help you collaborate with research teams and convey technical findings clearly. These competencies are crucial for contributing to innovative research projects, ensuring reliable results, and supporting the advancement of technology.

What does a Software Engineer Research Assistant do?

A Software Engineer Research Assistant supports research projects by developing, testing, and maintaining software tools and applications. They often collaborate with researchers and engineers to implement experimental algorithms, analyze data, and document findings. The role may involve coding, debugging, and adapting software to meet the needs of specific research objectives. Additionally, they help ensure that research code is efficient, reproducible, and well-documented for future use.

How do Software Engineer Research Assistants typically collaborate with both engineering and research teams?

Software Engineer Research Assistants often serve as a bridge between software development and research teams, translating research concepts into functional prototypes or tools. They regularly participate in joint meetings, contribute to code reviews, and align their tasks with the goals of both groups. Effective communication skills are essential, as they need to understand academic research requirements while adhering to engineering best practices. This collaborative environment offers exposure to cutting-edge technology and the opportunity to contribute to innovative projects.
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What cities are hiring for Software Engineer Research Assistant jobs? Cities with the most Software Engineer Research Assistant job openings:
What are the most commonly searched types of Software Engineer Research jobs? The most popular types of Software Engineer Research jobs are:
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What job categories do people searching Software Engineer Research Assistant jobs look for? The top searched job categories for Software Engineer Research Assistant jobs are:
Software Engineer Research Assistant jobs near you
Infographic showing various Software Engineer Research Assistant job openings in the United States as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 75% Full Time, 21% Part Time, 1% Temporary, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 99% Physical, and 1% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $88,754 per year, or $42.7 per hour.

Software Engineer, Research Acceleration

Thinking Machines Lab

San Francisco, CA • On-site

$350K - $475K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, PTO

Posted 16 days ago

Job description

Thinking Machines Lab's mission is to empower humanity through advancing collaborative general intelligence. We're building a future where everyone has access to the knowledge and tools to make AI work for their unique needs and goals.
We are scientists, engineers, and builders who've created some of the most widely used AI products, including ChatGPT and Character.ai, open-weights models like Mistral, as well as popular open source projects like PyTorch, OpenAI Gym, Fairseq, and Segment Anything.
About the Role
We're looking for engineers to build the libraries and tools that accelerate research at Thinking Machines. You'll own internal infrastructure - evaluation libraries, RL training libraries, experiment tracking platforms - and build systems that compound research velocity over time.
This is a collaborative role. You will work directly with researchers to identify bottlenecks and pain points. Success means researchers trust your systems to just work and find them a delight to use.
What You'll Do
  • Design, build, and operate research infrastructure including evaluation frameworks, RL training systems, experiment tracking platforms, visualization tools, and shared utilities.
  • Develop high-throughput, scalable pipelines for distributed evaluation, reward modeling, and multimodal assessment.
  • Build systems for reproducibility, traceability, and robust quality control across research experiments and model training runs. Implement monitoring and observability.
  • Partner directly with researchers to identify bottlenecks and unlock new capabilities. Own research tooling like a product manager, proactively seeking feedback and tracking adoption.
  • Collaborate with infrastructure, data, and product teams to integrate tools across the technical stack.
Skills and Qualifications
Minimum qualifications:
  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in computer science, engineering, machine learning, or similar.
  • Strong software engineering fundamentals with a track record of building reliable, maintainable systems.
  • Proficiency in at least one backend language (we use Python or Rust).
  • Comfort operating across the stack and owning projects end-to-end.
  • Experience in highly collaborative environments involving many different cross-functional partners and subject matter experts.

Preferred qualifications - we encourage you to apply if you meet some but not all of these:
  • Track record building tooling for researchers that achieved high adoption without top down mandates.
  • Experience building or maintaining ML research infrastructure such as training frameworks, evaluation libraries, or experiment tracking systems.
  • Contributions to open-source ML tools or widely-used internal frameworks at research-focused organizations.
  • Record of publications or technical writing on ML systems, infrastructure, or tooling.
  • Background working closely with ML researchers to understand and solve their tooling needs.
  • Familiarity with distributed systems, modern ML frameworks (PyTorch, JAX), and data processing at scale.
  • Experience with research observability tools, distributed compute frameworks (Ray, Spark), or large-scale evaluation pipelines.
Logistics
  • Location: This role is based in San Francisco, California or New York, NY.
  • Compensation: Depending on background, skills and experience, the expected annual salary range for this position is $350,000 - $475,000 USD.
  • Visa sponsorship: We sponsor visas. While we can't guarantee success for every candidate or role, if you're the right fit, we're committed to working through the visa process together.
  • Benefits: Thinking Machines offers generous health, dental, and vision benefits, unlimited PTO, paid parental leave, and relocation support as needed.

As set forth in Thinking Machines' Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.
Thinking Machines Lab will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the California Fair Chance Act, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and any other applicable state or local fair chance ordinance or law.

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