Application Security Engineer

Cisco•Research Triangle Park, NC

2d•$167,000 - $292,800

About The Position

The application window is expected to close on: 07/29/2026. Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received. Plans, conducts, analyzes, and shares research that advances the field of AI, as it relates to networking, security, programming, human-computer interaction, or other strategic areas in computer science. Utilizes expertise in AI and research methodologies to develop research plans, build models, run experiments, and provide models and solutions to relevant teams. Serves as research strategy liaison to engineers and product managers and works collaboratively with product management, engineering, and design teams to identify business and AI research goals. Summarizes and communicates results to all relevant partners and stakeholders to influence decisions.

Requirements

Bachelors + 7 years of related experience, or Masters + 4 years of related experience, or PhD + 1 year of related experience

Nice To Haves

Varies based on the team and business needs | Preferred Qualifications are desired education, experience, and skills that are in addition to Minimum Qualifications.

Responsibilities

Facilitates design and execution of research studies; may lead short to medium-term strategic research projects or initiatives (e.g., six-month to one-year research plans, roadmaps) with manageable complexity and resource requirements
Influences a product team
Applies strong knowledge of usage and applicability of a related set of AI and broad research tools/methods while considering ethical considerations of approaches
Develops depth of expertise on one to two research approaches/topics and shapes research initiatives and strategies within area of specialism
Monitors and evaluates emerging AI technologies and techniques to optimize solutions for business needs
May be invited to participate and/or share perspectives on research methods at top AI conferences
Utilizes a diverse array of advanced tools, models, and data structures to build, train, and evaluate AI models
Iterates on and extends existing solutions with either new techniques or through adoption of existing methods from a related problem domain
Engages in project discussions around methodology, providing valuable insights and expertise to optimize research processes and outcomes
Identifies and/or creates new research initiatives that will advance products and processes at Cisco using AI
Leads ongoing AI research planning and execution
Determines best AI methods to be deployed based on research objectives
Designs and leads experiments and/or prototypes
Synthesizes and analyses data into triangulated insights that impact product decisions
Uncovers themes and interprets data and insights across multiple studies, products, and/or customer journeys
Recognizes the broader connections across the entire user journey to a create meta-analysis on a topic
Independently develops and structures comprehensible presentations
Leads working/collaboration sessions, typically with diverse, cross-functional audiences
Collaborates with the business to understand novel problems, tracks ongoing issues and industry breakthroughs, and develops hypotheses to address issues and manage risk in an ethical manner
Serves as research contact within own team to aid less-experienced colleagues
Keeps abreast of industry changes and the latest developments to optimize the application of new AI technologies and techniques to solve business problems and improve performance
Leads creation of research proposals, papers, patents, or other artifacts; content is of scientific quality and rigor
Shares knowledge/ideas in relevant forums with the company and may present at industry forums
May mentor peers or interns in either a formal or informal capacity

Benefits

medical, dental and vision insurance
a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
paid parental leave
short and long-term disability coverage
basic life insurance
Cisco restricted stock units
10 paid holidays per full calendar year
1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
1 paid day off for employee’s birthday
paid year-end holiday shutdown
4 paid days off for personal wellness
16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year (non-exempt)
flexible vacation time off program (exempt)
80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter
up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward
Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
annual bonuses (for non-sales roles)
performance-based incentive pay (for sales roles)