JOB LEVEL
P55
EMPLOYEE ROLE
Individual Contributor

Job Description

Changing the world through digital experiences is what Adobe’s all about. We give everyone-from emerging artists to global brands-everything they need to design and deliver exceptional digital experiences! We’re passionate about empowering people to create beautiful and powerful images, videos, and apps, and transform how companies interact with customers across every screen.
We’re on a mission to hire the very best and are committed to creating exceptional employee experiences where everyone is respected and has access to equal opportunity. We realize that new ideas can come from anywhere in the organization, and we know the next big idea could be yours!
Adobe Firefly’s Applied Science & Machine Learning (ASML) group is looking for research scientists and engineers focused on post-training, alignment, and distillation of large-scale generative AI models. Our goal is to push the frontier of generative AI while ensuring models are safe, efficient, aligned with user intent, and deployable at scale.
We are particularly interested in candidates with expertise in reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF), direct preference optimization (DPO/GRPO), supervised fine-tuning (SFT), and model distillation / efficiency methods. This work directly impacts the quality, efficiency, and safety of Firefly’s image and video generation models, enabling next-generation creative workflows for millions of users.
As an Applied Scientist at Adobe, you will join a world-class team of applied researchers and engineers building the future of digital experiences. You will have the opportunity to innovate across the full post-training stack, collaborate across data, modeling, and product, and see your work ship to customers worldwide.
Job Responsibilities

• Conduct innovative research and development in post-training alignment and model distillation for large-scale generative AI models.

• Design and evaluate techniques such as RLHF, DPO/GRPO, SFT, reward modeling, and preference optimization to improve instruction-following, controllability, and safety.

• Develop efficient distillation, compression, and inference acceleration methods to make frontier models deployable at scale.

• Collaborate with researchers, engineers, and product teams to transfer post-training innovations into Adobe products.

• Build and maintain pipelines to evaluate generative models across quality, efficiency, and safety metrics.

• Convert research ideas/papers into production-ready implementations in Python and modern ML toolkits.

• Provide technical mentorship and guidance to peers and junior researchers.

What you'll need to succeed

• Master’s or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Machine Learning, or a related field.

• Strong hands-on experience with large-scale generative AI training and post-training (SFT, RLHF, DPO/GRPO, distillation).

• Familiarity with diffusion models, transformers, or other state-of-the-art generative architectures.

• Excellent communication skills and ability to collaborate across cross-functional teams.

• Strong coding and prototyping ability in Python, PyTorch, and ML infrastructure tools.

• Working with product teams on technology transfers

• Good publication record in Computer Science, AI/ML or related fields

#FireflyGenAI

Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this positionis $182,900 -- $352,350 annually. Paywithin this range varies by work locationand may also depend on job-related knowledge, skills,and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process.

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In California, the pay range for this position is $243,300 - $352,350

At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans. Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP).

In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award.

State-Specific Notices:

California :

Fair Chance Ordinances

Adobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

Colorado:

Application Window Notice

If this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs.

Massachusetts:

Massachusetts Legal Notice

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Internal Opportunities

Creativity, curiosity, and constant learning are celebrated aspects of your career growth journey. We’re glad that you’re pursuing a new opportunity at Adobe!

Put your best foot forward:

1. Update your Resume/CV and Workday profile - don’t forget to include your uniquely ‘Adobe’ experiences and volunteer work.

2. Visit the Internal Mobility page on Inside Adobe to learn more about the process and set up a job alert for roles you’re interested in.

3. Check out these tips to help you prep for interviews.

4. If you are applying for a role outside of your current country, ensure you review the International Resources for Relocating Employees on Inside Adobe, including the impacts to your Benefits, AIP, Equity & Payroll .

Once you apply for a role via Workday, the Talent Team will reach out to you within 2 weeks. If you move into the official interview process with the hiring team, make sure you inform your manager so they can champion your career growth.

At Adobe, you will be immersed in an exceptional work environment that is recognized around the world. You will also be surrounded by colleagues who are committed to helping each other grow through our unique Check-In approach where ongoing feedback flows freely. If you’re looking to make an impact, Adobe's the place for you. Discover what our employees are saying about their career experiences on the Adobe Life blog and explore the meaningful benefits we offer.

Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other applicable characteristics protected by law. Learn more.

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