Research Fellow

Classification: Academic Level B
Salary package: $121,598 - $137,870 per annum plus 17% superannuation
Term: Full time, Fixed term (up to 3 years)

• Opportunity to work on a high-impact Defence-funded research project under the ASCA Emerging and Disruptive Technologies program.
• Develop cutting-edge AI planning and orchestration technologies for real-world logistics and decision support.
• Collaborate with leading experts in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at ANU and Defence stakeholders.

About the opportunity

This role offers an exciting opportunity to develop cutting-edge AI planning and orchestration technologies for Defence logistics, integrating multi-modal agentic AI systems and automated reasoning. You will work alongside leading experts in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, contribute to high-impact research outcomes, and help deliver a demonstrator for continual planning and execution monitoring.

This position is a fixed term appointment for a period of 3 years to contribute to the ASCA-funded project AI Planning for Goal-Directed Orchestration. The Research Fellow will:

• Develop novel counter-example guided planning algorithms for mission and epistemic objectives.
• Integrate multi-modal agentic AI systems into an orchestration framework.
• Deliver software artefacts and demonstrators to achieve TRL5 in Defence logistics planning.
• Contribute to publications, stakeholder engagement, and supervision of a project PhD student.

Applications are particularly invited from researchers who undertake high-impact collaborative and cross-disciplinary research in AI planning, automated reasoning, and machine learning.

About the College

As one of the great universities of the world, ANU is driven by a culture of excellence in everything we do. Our lived experience is increasingly one of large-scale systems of people, whose actions and interactions are influenced by our digital, physical and biological environment. The ANU College of Systems and Society (CSS) hosts many of the key disciplines necessary to help us design, build, regulate and secure the future.

CSS brings together expertise in social, technical, computational, ecological and scientific systems to build a new approach to systems design and build new national capabilities in data-driven policy and business development. The work we do in the College is to strengthen our national mission and meet our unique responsibilities as Australia’s national university. We will deliver on our mission by building a strong community, providing transformative educational experiences, conducting high-impact research, seeking meaningful engagement, and becoming a resilient organisation.

We welcome and openly acknowledge differences in expertise, research / education / professional focus, experience and perspective.

CSS is a vibrant and diverse community of more than three thousand students, staff, and visitors. Our College comprises three schools: the School of Computing, School of Cybernetics, and School of Engineering, supported by the Professional Services Group.

The School of Computing has a strong foundation in computing and information sciences at ANU. We are a transformative centre for research in artificial intelligence and machine learning, computer systems and software, and theoretical foundations of computing. We span traditional and modern thinking, connecting decades of computer science methodologies with modern data and computational science. Our mission is motivated by the need to design, drive and sustain strategic activities via five broad focus areas: Computing Foundations, Computational Science, Intelligent Systems, Data Science and Analytics, and the Software Innovation Institute. Be part of an innovative and forward-looking intellectual agenda, built on a diverse, inclusive culture.

To enquire about this role, please contact Associate Professor Charles Gretton, T +61 2 6125 4001, E: charles.gretton@anu.edu.au. 

Our commitment to diversity, belonging, inclusion and equity

ANU is committed to building a diverse and inclusive community, and particularly welcomes applications from women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and candidates from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Furthermore, it is practice in the ANU College of Systems & Society to actively seek a gender mix of shortlisted candidates for interview. For more information about staff equity at ANU, visit https://services.anu.edu.au/human-resources/respect-inclusion   

We welcome and develop diversity of backgrounds, experiences and ideas and encourage applications from individuals who may have had non-traditional career paths, who may have taken a career break, had career disruptions or who have achieved excellence in careers outside of the higher education sector. We support applicants who require flexible arrangements in their work environments or patterns. If your experience looks a little different to what we’ve described, but you’re passionate and motivated by this position, we welcome your enquiry and application. 

What we offer

The ANU provides attractive benefits and excellent support to maintain a healthy work/life balance and offers generous remuneration benefits, including four weeks paid vacation per year, assistance with relocation expenses and 17% employer contribution to superannuation. We also offer generous parental leave, the possibility of flexible and part time working arrangements, a parental and aged care support program, dual career hire programs, staff and family tuition fee discounts, ANU school holiday programs, and childcare facilities on campus. For more information, visit: https://services.anu.edu.au/human-resources  

How to apply

Applicants must apply online via the ANU recruitment portal and should upload the following separate documents: 

• A detailed curriculum vitae (CV) including a full publication list and the names and contact details of at least three referees (preferably including a current or previous supervisor). If your CV does not include referees, you can complete these online when prompted in the application form. 
• A 1-page statement addressing the selection criteria. 
• A 1–2-page statement outlining your approach to coursework education and student project supervision. 
• A 1–2-page statement outlining your research objectives for the next 3 years if appointment

Please note: The successful candidate must have rights to live and work in this country, the ability to obtain a security clearance and will be required to undergo a background check during the recruitment process.  An offer of employment is conditional on satisfactory results.