PhD Researcher, HCI & Visualization Research

Autodesk•Toronto, ON

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

Graduate internships will explore new areas of technology and help Autodesk (as well as the academic community) understand how emerging technologies can be leveraged to improve creation and design processes. Within the Future AI Experiences and HCI & Visualization research groups, you and your mentor(s) will arrive at a mutually agreed upon research project in the area of human-computer interaction or data visualization. Over the course of the internship, you will drive that project forward with guidance from your mentor(s), including implementation, experimental validation, data analysis, etc. Specific areas of interest for research projects include: Human-AI Collaboration, Agentic Co-Creation, User Interfaces for Generative AI or Machine Learning Systems, Information Visualization, Software Learning, Future of Work, Generative Design Tools, Interactive Fabrication, Augmented Reality, and Virtual Reality.

Requirements

Currently enrolled in a PhD program in Computer Science or related field, with a specialization in Human-Computer Interaction, and at least one academic term to complete post internship
Demonstrated expertise in the area of interactive technologies, with peer-reviewed publications on the topic in international venues
Strong communication skills and teamwork experience
Very strong technical skills in building software prototypes

Nice To Haves

Experience with modern generative AI tools and frameworks (e.g., GPT, Llama, Stable Diffusion, ComfyUI)
Experience with web development and frameworks (e.g., React/Next.js, Node.js/Flask, etc.).
Experience interfacing with unique hardware modules
Experience developing software in a Windows or MacOS environment
Experience developing software for AR or VR equipment (e.g., Meta Quest, Apple Vision Pro)
Experience with programming 3D graphics, Unity, Unreal Engine
Experimental design and data analysis
Rapid prototyping
Ability to work effectively as a member of a team; ability to work with minimum supervision, self-driven
Ability to deal with requirements from multiple sources and find solutions and deal with conflicts and compromises in a diplomatic manner
Ability to communicate effectively and work cooperatively with other teams
Ability to write clear, concise, correct technical material

Responsibilities

Support the research and design efforts by developing software prototypes and explore concepts
Conduct literature reviews
Gather requirements and issues to explore and design
Develop algorithms
Build prototypes to test and explore concepts
Conduct experiments to test research ideas and hypotheses
Measure human performance and cognition limitations related to interaction with technology
Conduct usability studies, ethnographic studies, heuristic evaluations, task analyses, structured interviews and surveys
Evaluate research findings and prototypes to make recommendations for impacting business and products.
Explore new prototyping frameworks and technologies
Author a full research paper
Produce an accompanying research video
Present the results of your research externally and internally