Scientist LLM's and agentic AI

About this position

Conflicts, crime, and subversive activities threaten our security worldwide. To counter these threats, TNO conducts innovative research and works on applying these insights with our security partners. In doing so, we support organizations such as the Ministry of Defence and the Police in making the best-informed decisions and carrying out (semi-)automated actions they can rely on.

We do this by conducting applied research, generating innovative ideas, and translating them into practical solutions. For example, in the use of intelligence for Defence, the development of decision support models for the Public Prosecution Service, and the application of NLP to analyze criminal communications. In this role, you will join the Intelligence & Decision Support research group. This driven team of around 40 colleagues brings together a wide range of expertise and backgrounds and is part of the Defence, Safety & Security unit.

What will be your role?

As a scientist, you contribute to research projects focused on LLMs and agentic AI for decision support within the defence and security domain. Working in multidisciplinary teams, you engage with various research questions, helping to shape the approach and methodology needed to answer them. Based on scientific research, existing methodologies, and best practices, you and your team develop concepts, with modelling and programming around LLMs forming an essential part of your work. The result may, for example, be a proof of concept, where you consistently keep in mind the impact of the tools you develop on the daily operations of our partners. You communicate project results to our partners and act as a valuable sparring partner for colleagues.

Examples of projects include developing an LLM concept for decision support within the Police, creating a proof of concept for mission planning in Defence, contributing to a Dutch LLM, and making the feasibility of agentic AI tangible for security partners.

At TNO, there is ample opportunity to deepen your expertise in new AI tools, attend conferences, and explore new research directions. There are also opportunities to initiate internal research lines and contribute to project acquisition and proposals for collaborations. In addition to project work, you can take on various side activities aligned with your interests and development goals, such as coordinating internships within the department, organizing content-driven or social events, and mentoring new colleagues.

What we expect from you

You are driven to contribute to the military and security domain through your work and are eager to learn more about it, so your work increasingly aligns with the needs of our partners. You handle sensitive information with care and are interested in, for example, participating in exercises or working on-site with a partner for a period of time to build valuable domain knowledge. With your curiosity, you actively seek out the information you need for your assignments. You are analytically strong and able to help translate scientific insights into practical applications. You are comfortable working on multiple projects and within different teams simultaneously and can switch effectively between them. You enjoy collaboration, leveraging your communication skills, while also being able to plan your work independently and confidently put forward proposals and take the lead. As a result, you are well equipped to present conclusions in written form, presentations, diagrams, and data visualizations, as well as facilitate expert workshops.

You are enthusiastic about working with AI, particularly LLMs, and are eager to further develop your expertise in this area in the coming years. In addition to prompt engineering, you are interested in topics such as fine-tuning, explainability, robustness, adversarial attacks, and other aspects that contribute to building effective systems. You enjoy diving deeper into these topics, for example by fine-tuning smaller models and developing specialized applications. You are also eager to learn, continuously developing yourself and embracing new information and responsibilities. You are willing to share your knowledge with colleagues and are a true team player.

What you bring:

• A university-level Master’s degree or PhD in fields such as Artificial Intelligence, Applied Mathematics, Data Science, or Operations Research.
• Excellent communication skills in both Dutch and English, spoken and written.
• Extensive programming experience in Python (and possibly other relevant languages).
• Experience setting up common LLM workflows, such as RAG pipelines, fine-tuning/LoRA, and model adaptation.
• Experience with modern LLM tooling, such as HuggingFace, LangChain, or LlamaIndex.
• Experience with enterprise models and APIs, such as Azure AI / Foundry or the OpenAI GPT API, and applying these in LLM-based applications, is a plus.
• Experience with data analysis and visualization/user interfaces (such as Vue.js and React).
• Demonstrable affinity with the security domain and Defence; experience in this domain is a plus.

What you'll get in return

Challenging and varied work with a real impact. And plenty of opportunities as, at TNO, you are in charge of shaping your career. We offer a gross monthly salary between € 3,530 and € 4,400 (based on your knowledge and experience), 8% holiday pay, a 13^th month bonus of 8.33% and a flex budget (5.58% + € 180). In addition, you will be given every opportunity to develop yourself.

Perhaps you would like to grow your career in the direction of commerce or consultancy? Or would you like to become a project manager? Immerse yourself in sustainable innovations? Or carve out a career as a technical expert?

TNO offers optional employee benefits, enabling you to tailor your benefits package to match your personal situation. You may also expect:

• An extremely professional, innovative working environment where colleagues are leading experts in their field.
• The opportunity to attend courses, workshops and conferences, and to receive training and coaching based on your needs.
• 33 days annual leave plus a flexible holiday that can be used on a cultural, religious, or otherwise important day of your choosing (on a full-time basis).
• An employer working towards a respectful, inclusive, and equitable work environment where every employee can flourish, with various initiatives such as Jong TNO, numerous expertise based guilds, Rainbow Community and Round Tables on diverse inclusion topics.
• We offer a comprehensive and flexible mobility plan that also includes full compensation for public transportation for commuting and business travel.
• Great social events with your team and other TNO colleagues. That’s how you will get to know a lot of people really quickly.
• Flexible working hours, the possibility to work parttime (32 or 36 hours) and the possibility of working from home.
• A good pension scheme.

Read more about tailoring your benefits package.

TNO as an employer

Our people are at the heart of TNO. Their curiosity, expertise and entrepreneurial mindset make it possible to deliver high-impact research and innovations that contribute to society’s sustainable wellbeing and prosperity. That is why we invest in an inspiring and inclusive working environment where colleagues can excel, have autonomy and continue to grow.

Your talent and ambition have every opportunity to flourish at TNO. You work with experts (both within and beyond TNO), have access to advanced technology and the freedom to explore, experiment and innovate. Our strength lies in independence, reliability and collaboration. We find each other in wonder and ingenuity. We are driven to push boundaries. By working with businesses and government, and by connecting different perspectives, we strengthen our innovative capability and create responsible, meaningful results.

At TNO, we believe this is our time to help society, government and business move forward faster. Together with driven colleagues, you turn knowledge into concrete innovations or ventures that truly make a difference by combining the power of science and entrepreneurship. And in doing so, you make your mark on our time.

The selection process

Please apply before the 19th of July, 2026. The selection process comprises two interview rounds. The preliminary interview takes place on the 30th and 31st of July, 2026. The second interview round has been scheduled for the 5th of August, 2026. In a final meeting we will discuss the terms of employment and your tailored benefits package. We aim to finalize the entire process within four weeks.

The selection process may include an online assessment and a reference check. As you will be working for clients in the domain of defence and security, a Certificate of No Objection issued by AIVD (the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service) is mandatory. This means you will have to undergo a security screening. Read more about security screening.