Analyst, Algorithm Research & Development

To make electronics, you need chips, wafers, transistors, reticles, and... To make these, you must see, test and manufacture them at scale—faster and better than ever before. That's where KLA comes in. Whether you're early in your career or an experienced professional, you'll solve complex challenges, work alongside brilliant minds and help shape the future of technology.

Group/Division

The Semiconductor Products and Customers (Semi PC) business unit designs, builds and sells KLA’s product portfolio to help chip manufacturers meet high-quality standards for technologies like AI, data centers, automotive and electronic devices. Our inspection, metrology, and analytics systems detect and monitor defects across logic and memory chips, specialty semiconductors, wafers, reticles, advanced packaging, process equipment and materials. We also develop technologies for specialty processes, IC substrates, and PCB manufacturing, including etch and deposition, component inspection, and imaging and analytics. The Measurement, Analytics and Control (MACH) division is KLA’s software powerhouse, responsible for developing high-performance software platforms that support semiconductor manufacturing. MACH delivers cutting-edge technologies in patterning analytics, modeling, and data science—empowering chipmakers to ramp next-gen devices faster and more efficiently. Our cross-functional team of research scientists, software engineers, apps engineers and process engineers are solving the industry’s most complex technical problems.

What You'll Do

In this role, you will play a key part in advancing business priorities by delivering high-impact work across your area of expertise.

About the Role

We are seeking an intellectually curious and technically exceptional AI Engineer to join our Applied AI Research organization.

This role is designed for individuals who enjoy moving beyond application of established techniques and are motivated by solving problems that have no obvious solution. The successful candidate will combine strong software engineering fundamentals with expertise in machine learning, statistical algorithms, deep learning, and agentic AI systems to create next-generation intelligence platforms for semiconductor manufacturing and engineering.

Unlike traditional software engineering roles, this position requires a strong research mindset. We are looking for engineers who question assumptions, derive first-principles understanding of problems, conduct systematic experimentation, and translate emerging research into practical business impact.

This role offers a unique opportunity to grow into a future technical and research leader capable of influencing the direction of AI, analytics, and intelligent automation across the organization.

Vision for the Role

Over the next several years, this individual is expected to evolve from an AI engineer into a recognized research leader who:

• Shapes the organization's AI strategy through technical innovation.
• Drives a culture of experimentation and evidence-based decision making.
• Bridges cutting-edge AI research with real-world engineering applications.
• Identifies transformational technologies before they become mainstream.
• Inspires teams to pursue ambitious technical challenges.
• Builds an innovation ecosystem through mentorship, technical leadership, and collaboration.

Key Responsibilities

Applied AI Research

• Investigate emerging AI techniques and evaluate their applicability to semiconductor manufacturing and engineering workflows.
• Conduct hands-on research in areas such as:
  • Foundation Models
  • Agentic AI Systems
  • Scientific Machine Learning
  • Computer Vision
  • Reinforcement Learning
  • Probabilistic Modeling
  • Knowledge Representation
  • Multi-Agent Systems
  • Causal AI
• Develop novel approaches for solving difficult engineering and manufacturing problems.
• Design rigorous experimental frameworks to validate hypotheses and quantify impact.
• Translate research findings into scalable product capabilities.

Statistical Learning & Algorithm Development

Design and develop advanced algorithms utilizing:

• Bayesian Inference
• Probabilistic Graphical Models
• Design of Experiments (DOE)
• Time-Series Analysis
• Optimization Techniques
• Causal Inference
• Anomaly Detection
• Predictive Modeling
• Multivariate Statistics
• Graph Analytics

Responsibilities include:

• Creating explainable and scientifically sound models.
• Evaluating statistical significance of experimental outcomes.
• Building decision-support and autonomous reasoning systems.

Deep Learning & Scientific AI

Develop next-generation deep learning solutions for:

• Defect Management
• Yield Analytics
• Manufacturing Optimization
• Image Understanding
• Pattern Recognition
• Engineering Knowledge Discovery

Work with and innovate on:

• CNNs
• Vision Transformers
• Multimodal Models
• Graph Neural Networks
• Self-Supervised Learning
• Representation Learning
• Foundation Models
• Diffusion Architectures

Candidates should be comfortable reading research papers, reproducing published techniques, and identifying opportunities for improvement.

Agentic AI & Intelligent Systems

Develop intelligent autonomous systems capable of:

• Planning
• Reasoning
• Tool Usage
• Workflow Orchestration
• Long-Horizon Goal Achievement

Build sophisticated AI systems using:

• LangGraph
• Semantic Kernel
• AutoGen
• CrewAI
• OpenAI Agent Frameworks
• MCP (Model Context Protocol)

Examples include:

• AI Copilots
• Manufacturing Assistants
• Engineering Intelligence Platforms
• Autonomous Analytics Systems
• Knowledge Agents

Software Engineering Excellence

Develop production-grade solutions using:

Primary Languages

• Python
• Modern C++ (C++17/20)

Additional Technologies

• PyTorch
• Ray
• Spark
• Kubernetes
• Docker
• Vector Databases
• Graph Databases

The candidate should be able to transform research prototypes into scalable and maintainable products.

Research Leadership Expectations

Although this is an individual contributor role, the candidate is expected to actively contribute to building a research culture.

This includes:

• Leading technical reading groups.
• Reviewing and discussing recent research papers.
• Driving internal innovation initiatives.
• Mentoring junior engineers on research methodology.
• Promoting first-principles thinking.
• Encouraging experimentation and hypothesis-driven development.
• Establishing engineering rigor around benchmarking and evaluation.

Success is measured not only by feature delivery but also by the advancement of the team's collective technical capability.

Required Qualifications

Education

MS or PhD preferred in:

• Computer Science
• Machine Learning
• Artificial Intelligence
• Statistics
• Applied Mathematics
• Electrical Engineering
• Related STEM discipline

Experience

Typically:

• BS + 5 years
• OR MS + 3 years
• OR PhD

Demonstrated experience in building production AI systems while maintaining strong interest in research and innovation.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is someone who:

• Reads research papers for fun.
• Questions conventional assumptions.
• Enjoys tackling open-ended technical challenges.
• Can move seamlessly from theory to implementation.
• Has strong mathematical intuition.
• Is passionate about creating new knowledge, not merely applying existing solutions.
• Wants to become a future Principal Engineer, Distinguished Engineer, or AI Research Leader.

What Success Looks Like After 3-5 Years

This engineer will have:

• Become a recognized technical authority in AI and analytics.
• Influenced the AI roadmap for multiple products.
• Originated innovations that materially impact product differentiation.
• Built a thriving culture of experimentation and technical excellence.
• Mentored the next generation of AI engineers and researchers.
• Established KLA as a leader in AI-native semiconductor manufacturing intelligence.

Minimum Qualifications

Doctorate (Academic) Degree and 0 years related work experience; Master's Level Degree and related work experience of 3 years; Bachelor's Level Degree and related work experience of 5 years

About KLA

We provide advanced inspection tools, metrology systems, process solutions, and computational analytics that make electronics possible, tackling complex challenges. From electron and photon optics to machine learning and data analytics, we seek perfection at the most fundamental level of matter in the universe. If you want to make electronics that push industries forward and make the world a better place, join us.

Use of AI Statement 

At KLA, our interviews seek to understand your individual skills, problem-solving approach and authentic thinking. To ensure a fair and consistent evaluation, the use of AI, recording tools or other technologies to generate, suggest or provide responses during interviews—whether virtual or in person—is not permitted unless explicitly approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation or invited by the interviewer. Use of these tools may interfere with our ability to evaluate your individual qualifications and affect your candidacy. KLA is committed to advancing innovation through responsible AI, and we value candidates who share this mindset.

We offer a competitive, family friendly total rewards package. We design our programs to reflect our commitment to an inclusive environment, while ensuring we provide benefits that meet the diverse needs of our employees.

KLA is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.