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Role profile · AI Research

Foundation Model Research Scientist

Train and study the large language, vision and multimodal models that frontier labs ship. You own a research agenda, a real compute budget, and the papers that come out of it.

Role profileWhat U.S. employers hire for. Not a specific job opening. Fit the profile? Get matched with U.S. companies that post real roles and gigs.
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Code WORKWITHUS unlocks the O1DMatch Starter plan at no cost. The eligibility check is an AI review of your background, not a legal opinion.

See how close you are to an O-1See how close you are to an O-1
At a glance
FieldAI Research
Usual visa pathO-1A (extraordinary ability)
Who hires this profileFrontier AI labs, big-tech research groups, well-funded model startups
Market pay (data, not an offer)USD 300k–900k+ total compensation
Work typeFull-time roles, contracts and short gigs with U.S. companies
How to get matchedFree eligibility check, then a profile with code WORKWITHUS

About the role

This profile is written for people already doing this work at a high level. U.S. employers that hire it include frontier AI labs, big-tech research groups, well-funded model startups. The sections below cover the work, what those employers screen for, and how a career like this maps to the O-1.

What you would do

  • Design new architectures, training objectives and data mixtures, and test them at scale
  • Run scaling-law studies and decide where the next order of magnitude of compute goes
  • Publish at NeurIPS, ICML and ICLR, and turn results into production model improvements
  • Mentor engineers and review the research of other teams

What U.S. employers look for

  • A PhD in ML or CS, or an equivalent publication record
  • Hands-on PyTorch or JAX and distributed training (FSDP, Megatron, DeepSpeed)
  • First-author papers at top venues with a visible citation trail
  • Evidence you have trained something large end to end, not only fine-tuned it

How this career maps to the O-1

An O-1 is judged against your field. People in this role usually build their case from evidence like this:

Scholarly articlesfirst-author papers and the citations behind them
Judgingreviewer and program-committee service for the major conferences
Original contributionsmethods or open models other labs adopted
High salaryfrontier-lab compensation is far above the field median

Pay

USD 300k–900k+ total compensation. Source: public H-1B LCA disclosures and levels.fyi, compiled May 2026; base + bonus + equity, approximate. This is market data to help you benchmark, not an offer from O1DMatch or any employer.

Visa path

O-1A is the standard route for this profile. Labs commonly file it directly; an agent-based O-1A also works when you split time across a lab and a startup.

O1DMatch

Fit this profile? Here is how to get matched

  1. Run the free eligibility checkA short AI review of your background against the eight O-1 criteria. Most of what you enter carries into your profile.
  2. Create your profile with code WORKWITHUSTell us your field and the work you do today; every O-1 case is judged against your field.
  3. Upload your evidenceAward letters, press about you, contracts, pay records, judging invitations. Each file is sorted under the criterion it supports, and your criteria map shows what you already meet and what is one document away.
  4. Meet U.S. companiesEmployers on the platform post full-time roles and short gigs. Gigs you confirm with verified companies count toward the U.S. itinerary your petition needs.
  5. Get to an attorney-ready caseIf you have no U.S. employer to file for you, the platform shows agents that can petition. When your score reaches 75 with the key pieces in place, we connect you with an immigration attorney.
How O1DMatch works for talent (2 min)How O1DMatch works for talent (2 min)
See how close you are to an O-1 (50 sec)See how close you are to an O-1 (50 sec)
Check your O-1 eligibility, freeJoin free with code WORKWITHUS

Code WORKWITHUS unlocks the O1DMatch Starter plan at no cost. The eligibility check is an AI review of your background, not a legal opinion.

Listings in this role family

Each listing is modeled on a real U.S. posting; the employer is not named. Apply through O1DMatch to be matched with employers hiring for this kind of role.

Senior Research Scientist, Health AI (Pretraining, RL and Evals)AI research and deployment company with a dedicated health research teamSan Francisco, CA (Bay Area) · Hybrid · Full-timeO-1A fitAdded week of Nov 2, 2026Senior Research Scientist, Agent Post-Training for Computer UseAI research and deployment company with a team post-training frontier agent modelsSan Francisco, CA (Bay Area) · On-site · Full-timeO-1A fitAdded week of Nov 2, 2026Senior Research Engineer, RL Distributed SystemsAI research company organized as a public benefit corporation, building large language models and AI safety researchSan Francisco, CA (Bay Area) · Hybrid · Full-timeO-1A fit (senior candidates)Added week of Nov 2, 2026Senior Research Engineer, Chip Design Reinforcement LearningAI research and safety company organized as a public benefit corporation, Bay AreaSan Francisco, CA (Bay Area) · Hybrid · Full-timeO-1A fitAdded week of Nov 2, 2026

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How the agent-based O-1 works, from law firms

You do not need a single employer to file for you. A U.S. agent can petition for work with several employers. These explainers come from law firms, including ours, and from the regulation itself:

Sherrod Sports Visas — What it means to be an O-1 or P-1 petitionerSherrod Sports Visas — O-1 and P-1 for agencies and managersNNU Immigration — Do you need an O-1 visa agent?NPZ & B Law Group — Can U.S. agents file O-1 or P-1 petitions?RJ Immigration Law — O-1 petitioners explained8 CFR 214.2(o) — the O-1 regulation (eCFR)

Read our plain-language guide →

Common questions

Is this a job opening?

No. This is a role profile: a description of a kind of role U.S. employers hire international talent for. It is not a vacancy at a specific company. If you fit it, O1DMatch helps you build the O-1 case and meet U.S. companies that post real roles and gigs on the platform.

Do I need one employer to file my petition?

Not necessarily. An O-1 must be filed by someone in the U.S., but that can be a U.S. agent filing for work with several employers. If you have no employer who can file, the platform shows agents that can petition on your behalf.

What does code WORKWITHUS give me?

It unlocks the O1DMatch Starter plan at no cost: your full eligibility breakdown and recommendations, your evidence map, and access to apply to roles and gigs from U.S. companies on the platform.

Does a high score mean my visa will be approved?

No. The score shows how your evidence lines up against the criteria. USCIS decides every case, and an attorney reviews yours before anything is filed. No outcome is promised.