AI Researcher

Meet the Team

Foundation AI is part of the Robust Intelligence team on a mission to build bleeding-edge AI technology for cybersecurity. The team has deep expertise in AI and security and is composed of leading researchers and engineers in the field.

Foundation AI is a newly formed organization founded by the Robust Intelligence team. Robust Intelligence joined Cisco through its acquisition in fall 2024 to lead security and AI at Cisco. Robust Intelligence pioneered the category of AI security and created the first platform for securing AI applications from supply chain, model vulnerabilities, and real-time attacks. Funded by Sequoia and Tiger Global, Robust Intelligence customers include the world's largest banking and financial institutions, HR and payroll services, fintech and financial software, technology and consumer electronics, insurance, consulting, travel, data centers and cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity as well as government agencies.

Your Impact

As an AI Researcher, you will play a pivotal role in advancing AI and security solutions at Cisco. This role offers the exciting opportunity to collaborate with a team of experts and contribute to groundbreaking projects that shape the future of AI security.

As a team, we push the frontiers of AI security through a diverse set of workstreams:

Lead large projects with multiple contributors to build cutting edge AI technology for security applications
Architect and develop scalable and robust platform to serve these AI models, streamline infrastructure setup for production, testing and development while optimizing efficiency and cost.
Collaborate with Research and Product teams to formalize product features, introduce new ideas in the product and help leadership build product direction.
Establish strong engineering foundations to ship features with unparalleled quality and velocity
Lead effort with cross-functional teams to integrate AI solutions into Cisco's security products.
Conduct research to stay ahead of emerging AI and security challenges.

Our Minimum Qualifications for this Role:
Bachelor’s degree with 5 years / Master’s degree with 2 years / PhD in Computer Science or related field
Minimum 4 years of experience in AI model development OR Software development OR infrastructure. Cisco Confidential
Proficiency in at least one modern programming language (e.g. Go, Python, etc.)

Our Preferred Qualifications for this Role:
Comfort with hands-on learning and constant experimentation to decompose and understand problem areas.
Comfort with fast iterative style development in an environment that requires autonomous thinking, risk taking and bias for action.
Deep knowledge of latest GenAI technologies, including emerging trends and innovations.
Strong understanding of cloud computing platforms and services (e.g., AWS, Azure, or GCP), with understanding of cloud native, on prem or hybrid solutions.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

#WeAreCisco where every individual brings their unique skills and perspectives together to pursue our purpose of powering an inclusive future for all.

Our passion is connection—we celebrate our employees’ diverse set of backgrounds and focus on unlocking potential. Cisconians often experience one company, many careers where learning and development are encouraged and supported at every stage. Our technology, tools, and culture pioneered hybrid work trends, allowing all to not only give their best, but be their best.

We understand our outstanding opportunity to bring communities together and at the heart of that is our people. One-third of Cisconians collaborate in our 30 employee resource organizations, called Inclusive Communities, to connect, foster belonging, learn to be informed allies, and make a difference. Dedicated paid time off to volunteer—80 hours each year—allows us to give back to causes we are passionate about, and nearly 86% do!

Our purpose, driven by our people, is what makes us the worldwide leader in technology that powers the internet. Helping our customers reimagine their applications, secure their enterprise, transform their infrastructure, and meet their sustainability goals is what we do best. We ensure that every step we take is a step towards a more inclusive future for all. Take your next step and be you, with us!
Message to applicants applying to work in the U.S. and/or Canada:

When available, the salary range posted for this position reflects the projected hiring range for new hire, full-time salaries in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including equity or benefits. For non-sales roles the hiring ranges reflect base salary only; employees are also eligible to receive annual bonuses. Hiring ranges for sales positions include base and incentive compensation target. Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location and additional factors, including but not limited to skillset, experience, and relevant education, certifications, or training. Applicants may not be eligible for the full salary range based on their U.S. or Canada hiring location. The recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.

U.S. employees have access to quality medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, short and long-term disability coverage, basic life insurance and numerous wellbeing offerings.

Employees receive up to twelve paid holidays per calendar year, which includes one floating holiday (for non-exempt employees), plus a day off for their birthday. Non-Exempt new hires accrue up to 16 days of vacation time off each year, at a rate of 4.92 hours per pay period. Exempt new hires participate in Cisco’s flexible Vacation Time Off policy, which does not place a defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use, but is subject to availability and some business limitations. All new hires are eligible for Sick Time Off subject to Cisco’s Sick Time Off Policy and will have eighty (80) hours of sick time off provided on their hire date and on January 1st of each year thereafter. Up to 80 hours of unused sick time will be carried forward from one calendar year to the next such that the maximum number of sick time hours an employee may have available is 160 hours. Employees in Illinois have a unique time off program designed specifically with local requirements in mind. All employees also have access to paid time away to deal with critical or emergency issues. We offer additional paid time to volunteer and give back to the community.

Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:

.75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;

1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;

1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.

For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.