Are you passionate about doing scientific research, do you have a positive attitude, do you believe in collaboration with other PhDs, and do you have perseverance? Then this vacancy is for you!

The University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Bosch are opening a new research lab called 'Delta Lab 2' consisting of one Tenure Track Assistant Professor and ten PhD students. One of the goals of the new lab (successor of Delta Lab 1) will be on new computer vision and machine learning technologies. Delta Lab is a research collaboration between UvA and Bosch and is based in the Amsterdam Science Park.

The Bosch Lab is embedded in the Computer Vision (CV) and Amsterdam Machine Learning (AMLab) Groups, two groups within the Informatics Institute working on visual recognition and machine learning. Each project will be done in collaboration with experts from Bosch. The lab will be part of the Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence (ICAI), a Netherlands initiative focused on joint technology development between academia, industry and government in the area of artificial intelligence.

For our new lab, we are seeking three PhD candidates in the field of computer vision and deep learning. Topics include deep and representation learning for semantic/instance segmentation and scene understanding based on new learning strategies. You will be working on different aspects of deep learning models and algorithms in the domain of machine learning and computer vision.

In particular, we are looking for three PhD candidates on the following projects:

• Project 1: Semantic Scene Reconstruction from a Single Image or Video
• Project 2: Intrinsic Image Decomposition and Color Constancy
• Project 3: Semantic/Instance Segmentation of Indoor Scenes

What are you going to do

You are going to carry out AI research and development in one of the three projects mentioned above, as part of the Delta lab 2 (in total ten PhD students of which three of them are in computer vision) at the University of Amsterdam. There will also be regular visits to and interactions with researchers at Bosch (Germany). At the University of Amsterdam, you will be supervised by prof. Gevers.

Your tasks will be to:

• develop new machine learning and computer vision methods within the context of one of the three research projects;
• collaborate with other researchers within the lab and Bosch;
• complete and defend a PhD thesis within the official appointment duration of four years;
• regularly present intermediate research results at international conferences and workshops, and publish them in proceedings and journals;
• assist in relevant teaching activities.

What do we require

Your experience and profile:

• a Master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, or related field;
• a strong background in computer vision and machine learning;
• excellent programming skills preferably in Python;
• solid mathematics foundations, especially statistics, calculus and linear algebra;
• you are highly motivated and creative;
• strong communication, presentation and writing skills and excellent command of English.

Fixed-term contract: 18 months.

Our offer

A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of four years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of four years). This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.

The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week, ranges between €2,443 to €3,122 (scale P). This is exclusive 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities is applicable.

Besides the salary and a vibrant and challenging environment at Science Park we offer you multiple fringe benefits:

• 232 holiday hours per year (based on fulltime) and extra holidays between Christmas and 1 January;
• multiple courses to follow from our Teaching and Learning Centre;
• a complete educational program for PhD students;
• multiple courses on topics such as leadership for academic staff;
• multiple courses on topics such as time management, handling stress and an online learning platform with 100+ different courses;
• seven weeks birth leave (partner leave) with 100% salary;
• partly paid parental leave;
• the possibility to set up a workplace at home;
• a pension at ABP for which UvA pays two third part of the contribution;
• the possibility to follow courses to learn Dutch;
• help with housing for a studio or small apartment when you’re moving from abroad.

Are you curious about our extensive package of secondary employment benefits like our excellent opportunities for study and development? Take a look here.

University of Amsterdam

The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds and scientific excellence.

Faculty of Science - Informatics Institute

The Faculty of Science has a student body of around 8,000, as well as 1,800 members of staff working in education, research or support services. Researchers and students at the Faculty of Science are fascinated by every aspect of how the world works, be it elementary particles, the birth of the universe or the functioning of the brain.

The mission of the Informatics Institute (IvI) is to perform curiosity-driven and use-inspired fundamental research in Computer Science. The main research themes are Artificial Intelligence, Computational Science and Systems and Network Engineering. Our research involves complex information systems at large, with a focus on collaborative, data driven, computational and intelligent systems, all with a strong interactive component.

The mission of UvA-Bosch DELTA Lab (Deep Learning Technologies Amsterdam) is to perform world class research in the fundamentals of deep learning, with applications to automotive and computer vision. Researchers at UvA will collaborate with researchers at Bosch through an exchange program. Research topics include: Reinforcement Learning, Bayesian Deep Learning, Data Efficient Deep Learning, Multi-Modal Deep Learning, Generative and Unsupervised Deep Learning, Model Compression, and Adversarial Deep Learning.

You will be working within the Computer Vision (CV) research group which focuses on studying core computer vision technologies and in particular colour processing, 3D reconstruction, object recognition, and human-behaviour analysis. The aim is to provide theories, representation models and computational methods which are essential for image and video understanding. Research ranges from image processing (filtering, feature extraction, reflection modeling, and photometry), invariants (color, descriptors, scene), image understanding (physics‐based, probabilistic), object recognition (classification and detection) to activity recognition with a focus on human‐behavior (eye tracking, facial expression, head pose, age and gender).

Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.