2 PhD Positions on Reinforcement Learning in the Real World

We are seeking 2 PhD candidates focusing on reinforcement learning in the recently established Mercury Machine Learning Lab (MMLL) . In this lab, researchers from the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) will be working together with data scientists from Booking.com to develop more usable reinforcement learning and other machine learning techniques.

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a promising approach to learn to control decision making problems that extend over time, but so far applications have been largely limited to synthetic settings such as games. Motivated by real-world problems faced in industry, we will investigate fundamental problems in reinforcement learning. For instance, we will study effective exploration in non-stationary environments and learning using many parallel trials. The candidates will be jointly supervised by Dr. M.T.J. Spaan and Dr. F.A. Oliehoek.

The MMLL collaboration provides the unique opportunity to test AI techniques in the real world, allowing new machine learning methods to be safely developed for wide application, for example in mobility, energy or healthcare. In addition to the existing researchers, the Mercury Machine Learning Lab will comprise six PhD candidates and two postdocs who will work on six different projects related to bias and generalisation problems over the course of the next five years. More details on the contents of the MMLL research projects are provided on the MMLL webpage