ML Engineer
at Bucket Robotics — Defect detection for manufacturing built from CAD and synthetic data.
What the role involves
Role Overview
Bucket Robotics is hiring a Machine Learning Engineer to push the frontier of CAD-native computer vision for manufacturing. You’ll work on the core ML systems that turn 3D geometry and synthetic data into reliable, production-grade vision models deployed on factory floors.
This role is perfect for someone who gets genuinely excited about new research ideas, enjoys deep analytical thinking, and wants to see those ideas survive contact with reality—edge deployment, distribution shift, weird lighting, and all.
You’ll operate at the boundary between research and production: exploring new approaches, validating them rigorously, and shipping the ones that work.
Responsibilities
Design, train, and evaluate computer vision and ML models for inspection and perception
Develop novel approaches for learning from CAD, synthetic data, and limited real-world data
Run rigorous experiments to understand model behavior, failure modes, and tradeoffs
Improve model robustness across lighting, materials, viewpoints, and manufacturing variation
Optimize models for edge deployment (latency, memory, reliability)
Collaborate closely with engineering to integrate models into production systems
Build evaluation frameworks and metrics that reflect real-world manufacturing requirements
Stay current with cutting-edge research and proactively test promising ideas
Required Qualifications
3+ years experience developing ML systems in research or production environments
Strong foundation in machine learning fundamentals and statistical reasoning
Hands-on experience training deep learning models (e.g. PyTorch)
Strong Python skills and comfort working in experimental codebases
Enjoys deep problem-solving, experimentation, and analytical thinking
Comfortable operating in ambiguity and iterating quickly
Preferred Qualifications
Experience in computer vision, 3D vision, or geometry-aware ML
Familiarity with synthetic data generation, simulation, or domain randomization
Experience deploying models to edge or resource-constrained environments
Background in robotics, manufacturing, or physical-world ML systems
Authored technical reports, blog posts, or peer-reviewed research
Previous startup or early-stage company experience
What We Offer
Competitive salary & meaningful equity – help define the core ML systems of the company
Comprehensive benefits – health, dental, and vision insurance
Professional development budget – conferences, courses, and research exploration
A chance to work on hard problems – ML that has to work in the real world, not just benchmarks
Our Values
Innovation First: We push the boundaries of what's possible in ML and advanced manufacturing
Ownership Mentality: We take responsibility and act like founders
Collaborative Spirit: We work together to solve complex challenges
Continuous Learning: We're always growing and improving
Bucket Robotics is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.
What they ask for
About Bucket Robotics
Bucket Robotics builds deployable computer vision systems for manufacturing — without labeling, long pilots, or fragile rules. We turn CAD and sample data into production-ready vision models that run on existing cameras and edge hardware. No manual labeling. No cold-start problem. Models deploy in minutes and adapt as parts, defects, and lines change. Our roots are in self-driving cars (Argo AI, Uber ATG, Stack AV), where we learned how to ship perception systems that operators trust in messy, real-world environments. We’re applying that playbook to factories: robust sensing, fast iteration, and tooling engineers actually enjoy using. Manufacturers struggle with inspection because parts are too variable for rules-based vision and too expensive to inspect by hand. Legacy systems are rigid, hardware-locked, and slow to customize. We take the opposite approach: software-first vision that fits into existing automation and scales across SKUs, facilities, and workflows. American Manufacturing is in the middle of a $700B automation push — but quality is still a trust problem. Bucket Robotics is building the vision infrastructure that lets factories automate inspection with confidence.
Full Bucket Robotics profile