Principal Computer Vision Engineer

Stack

Responsibilities

• ▹Lead a team of computer vision engineers, setting technical direction and developing talent
• ▹Architect and maintain end-to-end image analysis systems, from drone capture through ML inference to data output
• ▹Write production-quality Python code for image processing, photogrammetry pipelines, and ML model deployment
• ▹Design and train machine learning models for plant counting, height measurement, health assessment, and disease/weed detection from aerial imagery
• ▹Manage AWS cloud infrastructure supporting large-scale image processing workloads
• ▹Drive the integration of emerging technologies (large vision-language models, foundation models) into the assessment pipeline
• ▹Collaborate cross-functionally with R&D biologists, IT, and operational teams to translate scientific needs into technical solutions
• ▹Communicate the team's vision and results to stakeholders at all levels, including executive leadership

Requirements

• ▹Ph.D. or M.Sc. in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Remote Sensing, or related field
• ▹10+ years of experience in computer vision and data engineering, with deep ML expertise
• ▹3+ years of people management experience leading technical teams
• ▹Strong hands-on Python and Linux skills, still writing code and making architectural decisions
• ▹Experience with photogrammetry (Metashape, Pix4D, or equivalent) and/or drone-based remote sensing
• ▹Proven ability building and operating large-scale image processing pipelines on AWS
• ▹Excellent communication skills, able to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• ▹Fluent English, written and spoken

Nice to have

• ▹Experience in agriculture, crop science, or precision farming applications
• ▹Background in multispectral/hyperspectral sensor data analysis
• ▹Experience with large vision-language models or foundation models for vision
• ▹Experience in fast-moving startup environments

Soft skills

What we offer

• ▹Remote-friendly work with occasional travel to Basel (1-2x/year)
• ▹Strong leadership support, dedicated budget, and room to explore cutting-edge AI/ML approaches
• ▹Clear growth path to R&D or Digital leadership roles

About the company

Syngenta Group's Digital Biological Assessment systems are among the most advanced drone-based computer vision platforms in agriculture R&D, processing hundreds of terabytes of aerial imagery annually.