Machine Learning Engineer

Salary and Grade: Grade A2 EUR 91,754 ( Bonn/Germany) or GBP 76,384 (Reading/UK) NET annual basic salary + other benefits

Final date to receive applications: 12/03/2026

Department: Forecasts and Services

Location: Bonn, Germany or Reading, UK

Contract type: STF-PL

Contract Duration: 3.5 years up to 31 December 2029, with possibility of extensions

We are in search of a highly motivated Machine Learning Engineer (A2) to work with ECMWF and its Member States on the next generation of machine learning weather forecasting models. This role is an integral part of a dynamic team, consisting of scientists and software engineers contributing to building ECMWF’s next generation of weather forecasting systems.

At ECMWF, you will join a passionate community collectively aiming to bring novel technology and science to the cutting-edge of numerical weather prediction. With the recent breakthrough in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the progress made in AI-driven weather forecasting, it becomes clear that AI will play a key role in the next generation of forecasting systems. To this end, ECMWF built a dedicated multi-disciplinary group to tackle these challenges.

ECMWF has been the first operational weather centre to publish results of its own global machine-learning weather model – the Artificial Intelligence Forecasting System (AIFS).

In this role, you will contribute to the development of the ECMWF open-source software stack, particularly Anemoi, working with scientists and users at ECMWF and in the Member States to design and implement machine-learning components for operational weather forecasting. You will support the development of machine learning components for training and inference, ensuring software is robust and scalable for operational use, and engage with the open-source community to improve usability and maintainability.

The role involves close collaboration with Member State teams and may include travel.

The role sits in the Machine Learning Engineering team, within the Innovation Platform. The primary focus of the team is to ensure that ECMWF’s machine-learning tools are robust, scalable, and suitable for operational weather forecasting, while adapting to rapid scientific advances in data-driven forecasting. The team develops and maintains production-ready ML frameworks in close collaboration with scientists and engineers at ECMWF and in the Member States, ensuring they can be used reliably in operational and research environments.

By continuously evolving the software and workflows, the team aims to keep ECMWF at the forefront of global weather prediction.

The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is a world leader in Numerical Weather Predictions providing high-quality data for weather forecasts and environmental monitoring. As an intergovernmental organisation, we collaborate internationally to serve our members and the wider community with global weather predictions, data and training activities that are critical to contribute to safe and thriving societies.

The success of our activities depends on the funding and partnerships of the 35 Member and Co-operating States who provide the support and direction of our work. Our talented staff together with the international scientific community, and our powerful supercomputing capabilities, are the core of a 24/7 research and operational centre with a focus on medium and long-range predictions. We also hold one of the largest meteorological data archives in the world.

ECMWF has also developed a strong partnership with the European Union and has been entrusted with the implementation and operation of the Destination Earth Initiative and the Climate Change and Atmosphere Monitoring Services of the Copernicus Programme and the Strengthening Early Earning in Africa (SEWA) Programme. Other areas of work include High Performance Computing and the development of digital tools that enable ECMWF to extend provision of data and products covering weather, climate, air quality, fire and flood prediction and monitoring.

Our vision:
The strength of a common goal
Our mission:
Deliver global numerical weather predictions focusing on the medium-range and monitoring of the Earth system to and with our Member States

ECMWF is a multi-site organisation, with its headquarters in Reading, UK, a data centre in Bologna, Italy, and a large presence in Bonn, Germany, as a central location for our EU-related activities. ECMWF is internationally recognised as the voice of expertise in numerical weather predictions for forecasts and climate science.

• Actively contribute to the ECWMF open-source software stack, particularly designing, implementing, and maintaining features in Anemoi core and inference pipelines.
• Collaborate with scientists and users to translate research ideas into production-ready ML systems.
• Contribute to open-source development, including code reviews, documentation, and community interaction.
• Ensure models and software meet operational…