Research Scientist in Autonomous Collaborative Systems

Date Posted: 2026-01-19

Country: United States of America

Location: US-CT-EAST HARTFORD-RTRC A ~ 411 Silver Ln ~ RTRC A

Position Role Type: Hybrid

Employment Requirements

• U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are authorized to access information under this program/contract
• Security Clearance: Not Required

About RTX Corporation

RTX Corporation is an Aerospace and Defense company that provides advanced systems and services for commercial, military and government customers worldwide. It comprises three industry-leading businesses – Collins Aerospace Systems, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon. Its 185,000 employees enable the company to operate at the edge of known science as they imagine and deliver solutions that push the boundaries in quantum physics, electric propulsion, directed energy, hypersonics, avionics and cybersecurity. The company, formed in 2020 through the combination of Raytheon Company and the United Technologies Corporation aerospace businesses, is headquartered in Arlington, VA.

About the Role

RTX Technology Research Center (RTRC) has a newly created position of Research Scientist in Autonomous Collaborative Systems (ACS). In this role, you will join the ACS team under the Artificial Intelligence (AI) discipline at RTRC. The team is engaged in a wide variety of research areas including computer vision, decision making, trustworthy and explainable AI and human-machine symbiosis for a variety of high impact real world problems in the aerospace, manufacturing, and defense industries.

Examples of relevant problems include multi-agent coordination, self-functioning systems of systems, cybersecurity, automated visual inspection of parts, and robotic perception and manipulation.

The ideal candidate will possess a strong foundation in AI and Autonomy, demonstrated by a track record of innovation through patents, contributions to research, and/or publications in prestigious venues. Relevant conferences include NeurIPS (Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems), CVPR (Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Conference), ICRA (International Conference on Robotics and Automation), IROS (International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems), RSS (Robotics: Science and Systems), and AAAI (Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence), among other leading research forums.

Responsibilities

• Applying and extending state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence approaches to a variety of application areas
• Enabling autonomous capabilities including sensing & perception, task & motion planning, reasoning & decision making, human-autonomy teaming, and robot learning
• Designing and developing algorithms for perception, decision-making, human-machine collaboration, networked and teamed systems, and next generation autonomous platforms
• Prototyping and simulating autonomous systems by writing code, developing software (simulation and visualization), creating algorithms, interfacing software/hardware, and supporting real-time demonstrations of autonomy in live, virtual, and simulation test environments
• Leading and supporting externally and internally sponsored programs, writing external and internal research proposals
• Building relationships to support partnership with leading, worldwide institutions (university, government agencies, national labs, and professional organizations) and meet organizational objectives
• Disseminating research results through reports, conference proceedings, presentations, and technical papers for archival journals

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Robotics, Computational Cognitive Science, Computer Science, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace, Mathematics, or a related field
• 5+ years of hands-on experience in working with autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, deep/reinforcement/machine learning, robotics, dynamics and controls, flight test and evaluation, modeling & simulation, data science, and statistical analysis
• Experience applying AI based perception and/or Reinforcement Learning techniques to solve real world problems
• Broad awareness of advancements in intelligent autonomous systems
• Programming languages: Python, C++, ROS; cloud computing, and configuration management
• U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are authorized to access the financial management system due to government contractual requirements

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience using a modern software development environment including automated testing, continuous integration, and deployment, and "Dev Sec Ops" environments
• Experience setting technical direction from initiation to execution of projects and managing technical deliverables for a small team
• Experience with Py Torch/Tensor Flow, MATLAB, Julia, Java; Real-time control prototyping and Software/Hardware-in-the-Loop testing
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, written/verbal communication, and interpersonal skills with track record of teamwork, adaptability, innovation, and initiative
• Clear and effective communication with all levels of management, business development, researchers, and customers
• Ability to focus on results in a fast-paced, dynamic team environment
• Ability to work independently with limited direction and in multidisciplinary environment

Benefits

Whether you're just starting out on your career journey or are an experienced professional, RTX offers a robust total rewards package including:

• Compensation and healthcare
• Wellness, retirement and work/life benefits
• Career development and recognition programs
• Parental (including paternal) leave
• Flexible work schedules
• Achievement awards
• Educational assistance
• Child/adult backup care
• Medical, dental, vision
• Life insurance
• Short-term disability
• Long-term disability
• 401(k) match
• Flexible spending accounts
• Employee assistance program
• Employee Scholar Program
• Paid time off and holidays
• Eligibility for annual short-term and/or long-term incentive compensation programs (dependent upon level and collective-bargaining agreement coverage; payments are not guaranteed and dependent upon individual performance, business unit performance, and/or company performance)

Compensation

Salary Range: $107,500 USD - $204,500 USD

The salary range provided is a good faith estimate representative of all experience levels. RTX considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role, function and associated responsibilities, a candidate's work experience, location, education/training, and key skills.

Note: This is a U.S.-based role. If the successful candidate resides in a U.S. territory, the appropriate pay structure and benefits will apply.

Location Details

• Onsite Location: East Hartford, CT
• As part of our commitment to maintaining a secure hiring process, candidates may be asked to attend select steps of the interview process in-person at one of our office locations, regardless of whether the role is designated as on-site, hybrid or remote.

Application Timeline

RTX anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted. However, factors such as candidate flow and business necessity may require RTX to shorten or extend the application window.

Equal Opportunity

RTX is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment.