Camera Image Processing Engineer

Summary

iPhone is the most popular camera in the world, with billions of photos taken every year. The seamless integration of software and hardware has led to camera features like the Photonic Engine, Portrait mode, and Super-high-resolution photos which deliver magical experiences that surprise and delight our customers!
The Camera Technologies & Systems team in the Camera & Photos org delivers amazing quality photos and videos by combining state of the art computer vision, image processing, and machine learning. As an Image Processing Engineer, you will help to take raw data off our camera sensors, and clean up the image, giving our industrial design teams more freedom when designing our hardware, confident that your work will still give a high quality image in the end.

Description

We are looking for candidates with some basic image processing experience, and some familiarity with writing code on GPUs. In this role you will help to analyze raw sensor data, identify issues, and propose algorithms to handle any problems. You can be called upon to fix problems arising from sensors, optics or control systems (such as auto focus and optical image stabilization). As such we do not expect you to be an expert on these things - there are too many to know them all! But we are looking for candidates with a demonstrated capability for creative thinking and quick learning. We increasingly use GenAI tools to help accelerate coding, but every change goes through a human review layer, so strong engineering judgment matters as much as raw output. Our team also designs traditional ML algorithms that run directly on the Apple Neural Engine (ANE).

Responsibilities

Work with early-phase hardware prototypes to gather sensor information.
Analyse sensor data from camera modules.
Develop algorithms to address any image artifacts coming from hardware deficiencies.
Implement algorithms on-device to run efficiently on the GPU.

Minimum Qualifications

Strong programming skills, particularly on Apple platforms - notably Swift, Metal, and Objective-C.
Some experience with image processing algorithms implemented on GPUs.
Graphics programming experience - comfortable working directly with pixels.
Exposure to machine learning, particularly as applied to image processing.
M.S. or Ph.D. in Imaging, Color, Vision, Computer, Optics Science, EE, or equivalent with 3+ years of experience in a related field.

Preferred Qualifications

An understanding of photography and what makes an image look good or bad. Photography in challenging conditions, such as low-light or high movement is particularly useful.
Experience with an existing camera image processing pipeline.
Strong experience with optimizing GPU workloads to run efficiently.
Experience with performance-oriented, high-throughput compute.
A demonstrated track record of algorithm development - solving novel problems rather than applying known recipes.
Experience designing or deploying traditional ML algorithms that run on the Apple Neural Engine (ANE).

Pay & Benefits — Cupertino, California, United States

At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $150,400 and $277,600, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses — including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits

Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.

Application Deadline

Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.