Postdoc NeuroAI: Biologically Grounded Neural Networks for Cognition

• Build the core of that tool chain: a set of neural network modules for perception and cognition, grounded in what is known about the brain’s own mechanisms.
• Develop NeuroAI-in-practice: a set of neural network modules that can be easily used and adapted by an experimental user, while also giving publishable scientific insights in and of themselves.
• Two use-cases, involving processing for vision implants and implants for cognitive restoration, will guide the work.
• Ensure these networks also have to run on-device.
• Together with a postdoctoral researcher from a Centre for Mathematics and Computer Science, translate the designs to a neuromorphic architecture.

What they ask

• You are a scientific programmer or postdoctoral researcher with excellent programming skills and a strong interest in NeuroAI.
• You have a PhD degree in a quantitative field, such as physics, mathematics, computer science, engineering or computational or theoretical neuroscience.
• You have experience with programming in Python and C.
• You have experience with deep learning tools such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, and JAX.
• You have a background in neuroscience, preferably on mechanisms for cognitive processes, or a strong desire to obtain such a background.

• Salary within salary scale 10 depends on previous education and number of years of (relevant) work experience.
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus.
• Extra days off: with full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the statutory 20.
• Flexible working hours, various leave arrangements, and working from home are possible.
• You are able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports membership.
• 34% discount on sports and cultural activities at the academic institution.
• Good pension plan.
• Plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions, with various training and development schemes.
• This position is physically hosted at the Neurophysics department of a research institute at an academic institution.
• The work is part of the Software Platform of an infrastructure, involving teams at different academic institutions.
• The research institute is a world-class interfaculty research centre that houses more than 700 researchers devoted to understanding the mechanistic underpinnings of the human mind.
• Research at the research institute is focused around four themes: language and communication; perception, action and decision-making; development and lifelong plasticity; natural computing and neurotechnology.
• Excellent, state-of-the-art research facilities are available.
• The research institute fosters a collaborative, multidisciplinary, and supportive research environment with a diverse international staff. English is the lingua franca at the Institute.