Open as of August 8, 2026

Principal Applied AI Scientist (Auth0)

oktaBellevue, Washington; Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York; San Francisco, California; Washington, DC

Why you can apply for this one

Healthcare benefits are included.

Job description

Secure Every Identity, from AI to Human

Identity is the key to unlocking the potential of AI. Okta secures AI by building the trusted, neutral infrastructure that enables organizations to safely embrace this new era. This work requires a relentless drive to solve complex challenges with real-world stakes. We are looking for builders and owners who operate with speed and urgency and execute with excellence.

This is an opportunity to do career-defining work. We're all in on this mission. If you are too, let's talk.

This is a hybrid role. It requires going to the local office 3 times a week.

The Auth0Lab Team

We are a small team of engineers exploring new Auth0 products and features ideas. We take things from 0 to 1 and we look to shape the future of identity.

Our team has had a big role shaping the identity industry:

we were all early at Auth0, which shaped how devs do authentication
as part of Auth0Lab we incubated Auth0 FGA which redefined how authorization is done across the industry
and we also incubated Auth0 for AI agents which defined auth for AI agents

We are currently focused on enabling builders and companies of any size to ship production grade AI agents, by helping them with identity and security. We believe data, and developing our own models will play a huge role in this.

The role

We are looking for a Principal Applied AI Scientist to take product ideas from 0 to 1 and define how we do new AI product innovation. You'll have a lot of independence: you set the technical direction for AI, and experiment fast with minimal process. With that comes real ownership: you'll be the first AI/ML person in the team, so you'll often be figuring it out without a research org behind you. This is a hands-on role. Publishing papers and open sourcing results might happen as it helps us and the industry, but is not our main goal.

We have a lot to teach you about security, auth, developer products and many other things. And we also want to learn from you. Join us to have fun learning and collaborating with a great group of people, while having the opportunity to shape a huge industry.

What you’ll be doing

We are looking for someone that both wants to be hands on and think about the industry big picture at the same time:

Model and solve auth and security related problems using AI/ML, through deep understanding of the inner workings and customer challenges
Lead end-to-end model development. Apply the right paradigm for the problem, e.g.: training traditional ML models from scratch, or fine-tuning and aligning small/large language models
Create and maintain evaluation and training datasets and workflows
Take ideas from research through prototype and product recommendation
Evaluate outcomes across quality, security, latency, and cost

What you’ll bring to the role

8+ years in ML / applied research roles. A PhD is not required, we value shipping over papers
You've led multiple 0 to 1 AI or ML projects and shipped practical ML or AI systems
Strong Python, ML frameworks, and software engineering skills
You love to learn and are able to do so quickly
You know how computers work and can apply that to solve hard problems, period.
You constantly strive to hit the right balance between simplicity and flexibility
You have a talent to grok customer's needs and continuously iterate on your understanding of a problem space based on their feedback, industry trends and available technology
You are able to work in a team environment, have good communication skills and understand the value of collaboration
Nice to have: experience working on security related products

#LI-HYBRID

#LI-SH1
P-1171_3481461

The annual base salary range for this position for candidates located in the San Francisco Bay area is between:

$274,000—$376,200 USD

Below is the annual base salary range for candidates located in California (excluding San Francisco Bay Area), Colorado, Illinois, New York and Washington. Your actual base salary will depend on factors such as your skills, qualifications, experience, and work location. In addition, Okta offers equity (where applicable), bonus, and benefits, including health, dental and vision insurance, 401(k), flexible spending account, and paid leave (including PTO and parental leave) in accordance with our applicable plans and policies. To learn more about our Total Rewards program please visit: https://rewards.okta.com/us.

The annual base salary range for this position for candidates located in California (excluding San Francisco Bay Area), Colorado, Illinois, New York, and Washington is between:

$244,000—$335,500 USD

The Okta Experience

We are intentional about connection. Our global community, spanning over 20 offices worldwide, is united by a drive to innovate. Your journey begins with an immersive, in-person onboarding experience designed to accelerate your impact and connect you to our mission and team from day one.

Okta is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, or status as a protected veteran. We also consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and convictions records, consistent with applicable laws.

If reasonable accommodation is needed to complete any part of the job application, interview process, or onboarding please use this Form to request an accommodation.

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