Senior Research Scientist (Neural Animation)

Electronic Arts•Vancouver, BC

3h•$165,000 - $256,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Electronic Arts creates next-level entertainment experiences that inspire players and fans around the world. We believe new creative technologies and tools will expand how players engage with and contribute to our experiences, supported by thoughtful product design, safety systems, and global reach. Our focus is on enabling more players to participate in creative expression by making creation easier, safer, and more rewarding. We are looking for a Senior Research Scientist to join our Animation research pillar and help pioneer the next generation of character animation technologies. Our goal is to build intelligent motion systems that will breathe life into future virtual characters. This is an advanced research role: you will lead the charge in translating complex neural network architectures into in-game responsive runtime behaviors, crafting high-impact simulation and generative-motion models that turn academic science into practical, expressive creations. As a diverse team with clear goals, we provide autonomy and genuine influence to each team member. We are looking for an open and curious person; someone who gets a kick out of taking new ideas, investigating them, and adapting their application to games. You need a genuine interest in video games paired with a critical understanding of how AI can be built for games, including the ability to form your own insights on how you can improve it. You will partner with other researchers, engineers, artists, and designers. You have a desire to explore new areas of game development: someone who is passionate, creative, communicative, and invested.

Requirements

Advanced Research Background: A degree in Computer Science, a STEM field, or equivalent practical experience related to game animation.
Technical experience: Experience with Generative Models, Computer Vision techniques (video segmentation, depth estimation, optical flow), Model training and inference.
Practical experience: Experience turning ideas into functional prototypes or demos that showcase concepts in practice.
Tooling Proficiency: Comfortable with development on Python and ML frameworks (PyTorch or TensorFlow), game engines (Unity, Godot, Unreal, etc) and experience with agentic frameworks.
Combined experience 7+ years between graduate degree research (PhD, Masters) and professional/research experience.

Nice To Haves

Curious, open-minded, and thrilled by exploring fresh concepts and tailoring them for game development.
Passionate, creative, and communicative individual who is deeply invested in innovating across new domains of gaming.

Responsibilities

Develop novel ideas by researching and implementing solutions to some of the most complex challenges in video game animation.
Pioneer applied research in Generative Motion, conceptualizing breakthrough algorithms and use cases that deliver expressive, player-facing animations running seamlessly on local hardware.
Build compelling demos that highlight novel solutions for character animation and locomotion with a focus on integration into modern game engine technologies.
Scientific Leadership: Share your impact by publishing your work in peer-reviewed conferences (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, CVPR), contributing to open-source, and speaking at industry events.

Benefits

paid time off (3 weeks per year to start)
80 hours per year of sick time
16 paid company holidays per year
10 weeks paid time off to bond with baby
medical/dental/vision insurance
life insurance
disability insurance
401(k)
bonus and other incentive programs
vacation (3 weeks per year to start)
10 days per year of sick time
paid top-up to EI/QPIP benefits up to 100% of base salary when you welcome a new child (12 weeks for maternity, and 4 weeks for parental/adoption leave)
extended health/dental/vision coverage
retirement plan
complimentary games