Machine Learning Engineer, Creative Intelligence Systems

About the job

“Apple is where individual imaginations gather together, committing to the values that lead to great work. Every new product we build, service we create, or Apple Store experience we deliver is the result of us making each other’s ideas stronger. That happens because every one of us shares a belief that we can make something wonderful and share it with the world, changing lives for the better. It’s the diversity of our people and their thinking that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do. When we bring everybody in, we can do the best work of our lives. Here, you’ll do more than join something — you’ll add something."

We are looking for a junior machine learning engineer to join Creative Intelligence Systems, the team behind iPhone’s Cinematic mode, Background Replacement, Portrait and Studio Light video effects, along with many other computational photography and video features used on hundreds of millions of Apple devices. You will help transform how people connect with their loved ones on FaceTime, prototype new Camera capture experiences, and invent new ways to edit photos and videos. Our team is made up of seasoned camera systems, rendering, machine learning, and computer vision engineers. We do it all: we research, we prototype, we integrate, we ship. Our work is often featured in Apple keynotes and at WWDC.

In this role, you will push the boundaries of what’s possible on device under tight compute and memory constraints. You will tackle problems such as 3D scene reconstruction and novel view synthesis, generative image and video editing, camera pose estimation, person segmentation, monocular depth estimation, shallow depth of field rendering, and subject tracking.

The ideal candidate is focused on product and experience, takes ownership of ambiguous problems, and has a strong foundation in machine learning and graphics. You survey the state of the art before committing to a direction, build working prototypes quickly, and reach out to partner teams to close technical gaps.

Responsibilities

• Track state-of-the-art computer vision, graphics, and machine learning research, both published and internal, and turn findings into concrete project plans.
• Prototype new communication, capture, and editing experiences end to end on iOS and macOS.
• Train, fine-tune, and evaluate machine learning models for image, video, and 3D tasks.
• Turn research prototypes into polished, robust, power-efficient product features within tight production cycles.
• Partner with internal teams to discover new capabilities and integrate them into our systems and products.
• Optimize workloads across CPU, GPU, Apple Neural Engine, and Private Cloud Compute to meet strict thermal, latency, and memory budgets.
• Share progress, trade-offs, and results with the team and leadership through regular demos and presentations.

Minimum Qualifications

• BS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• Strong programming skills in Python, with working knowledge of C or C++.
• Hands-on experience with modern deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or JAX.
• Solid foundation in machine learning, computer vision, 3D graphics, or related domains.
• Demonstrated interest in keeping up with state-of-the-art research.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• MS in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Computer Graphics, or related field.
• Experience with 3D reconstruction, neural rendering such as Gaussian splatting, or generative models for inpainting and outpainting.
• Experience with camera pose estimation, SLAM, or AR frameworks such as ARKit.
• Exposure to GPU programming with Metal, CUDA, or similar.
• Experience with Swift or Objective-C on Apple platforms.
• Fluency with AI-assisted and agentic coding tools.
• Track record of successful industry internships.

Pay & Benefits

At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $129,300 and $225,300, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses — including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits

Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.

EEO Statement

Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant

Accessibility

At Apple, we believe accessibility is a fundamental human right. You’ll find that idea reflected in everything here — in our culture, our benefits and our digital tools. By welcoming as many perspectives as possible, we help you build a career where you feel like you belong.

Learn about accessibility in Apple’s workplace

Learn about reasonable accommodations for job applicants

Application Deadline

Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.