PhD in Artificial Intelligence to support Sustainable Development Goals 6 (clean water) and 7 (clean energy) as part of the Innovation Lab for Utilities on Sustainable Technology and Renewable Energy (ILUSTRE) project, funded in a public private partnership by NWO/NLAIC and private partners.

PhD in Artificial Intelligence for power load and renewable energy forecasting in electricity grids (ILUSTRE)

The Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (JADS) is the joint Data Science Academy of Tilburg University and Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands.

JADS is seeking an enthusiastic colleague for the position of 

PhD researcher in Artificial Intelligence for power load and renewable energy forecasting in electricity grids, 

as part of the ILUSTRE project that focusses on use-cases in the Caribbean region.

Short Description 
Are you an enthusiastic and ambitious researcher, with a passion for using deep learning and explainable AI methods for power-load forecasting and achieving promising and renewable-energy forecasting? Do you have a completed master's degree in a field related to machine learning (Computer science, AI, Data Science), or in Electrical Engineering with an affinity for AI and deep learning? Does the idea of working on real-world problem, and working with industry partners excite you? We are recruiting a PhD candidate who will develop accurate AI-powered electricity grid forecasting methods and trial them with industrial partners who work in the Dutch Caribbean islands.

Job Description
Short-term forecasts of (a) power load and (b) renewable energy supply, are crucial for decarbonizing electricity grids: without these forecasts, high-carbon baseload generators must be kept running. The scientific challenge is to achieve accurate and reliable forecasts, in the face of changeable energy demand patterns and external covariates (weather, public events, etc.). Deep learning has been shown to perform very well on power-load forecasting and achieves promising results in renewable-energy forecasting (Wang et al., 2019). This Ph.D. plan sets out to develop deep learning algorithms that realize forecasts that are both accurate and reliable, with the flexibility to adapt to local conditions. You will be contributing to the research conducted in ILLUSTRE by utilizing techniques such as (geometric) deep learning, and nonparametric (Gaussian process) regression.

ILUSTRE project
This position is linked to ILUSTRE, a new Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence (ICAI) to be established in Curaçao. ILUSTRE will be a living lab in the Caribbean with the objective to develop, implement and test AI innovations that will accelerate the use of clean energy and advanced solutions in water treatment and wastewater recycling/purification. The innovation lab is one of the new ICAI labs that are part of the ROBUST program on Trustworthy AI-based Systems for Sustainable Growth which is financed under the NWO LTP funding scheme. ILUSTRE offers opportunities for PhD candidates who wish to support to the acceleration of the energy transition and who have an affinity with the Dutch Caribbean islands.

• A master’s degree (or an equivalent university degree) in computer science, artificial intel-ligence, data science, electrical engineering or a closely related quantitative subject.
• Provable affinity with the Caribbean region. 
• Preparedness to perform a significant part of the research in the Caribbean region.
• A research-oriented attitude.
• Ability to work in a team while also taking a pro-active attitude to drive your own research in collaboration with industrial partners and other stakeholders
• Fluent in spoken and written English (C1 level).
• Experience of programming to implement machine learning or statistics is desirable.

Being appointed at JADS provides a meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious community of 2 universities and startups. Based on the project, the candidate receives an appointment at Tilburg University.

As a PhD Student at JADS you will have a full-time employment for a total of four years, with an intermediate evaluation after nine months. JADS offers excellent employment conditions with attention to flexibility and (personal) development and attractive fringe benefits. The gross monthly salary is in accordance with the Collective Labor Agreement for Dutch Universities. The minimum gross salary is € 2.541 per month up to a maximum of € 3.247 in the fourth year. The se-lected candidate will start with a contract for one year. Upon a positive outcome of the first-year evaluation, the candidate will be offered an employment contract for the remaining three years. You are entitled to a vacation allowance of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3% of your gross annual income. If you work 40 hours per week, you will receive 41 paid days of leave per year. PhD Stu-dents from outside the Netherlands may qualify for a tax-free allowance of 30% of their taxable salary if they meet the relevant conditions. The university applies for this allowance on their be-half. JADS will provide assistance in finding suitable accommodation.

The exact conditions of employment may vary depending on the percentage of time spent in Curaçao as part of your secondment. 

Preferred starting date: September 1, 2023.

To develop your teaching skills, you will spend 10% of your employment on teaching tasks. To support you during your PhD and to prepare you for the rest of your career, you will make a Training and Supervision plan and you will have free access to a personal development program for PhD students.

Next to that we offer all kinds of facilities and arrangements to maintain an optimal balance between work and private life. All employees of the university are covered by the so-called General Pension Fund for Public Employers (Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP).  

JADS values an open and inclusive culture. We embrace diversity and encourage the mutual integration of groups of employees and students. We focus on creating equal opportunities for all our employees and students so that everyone feels at home in our university community. 
All researchers working in JADS have contracts at either Tilburg University or Eindhoven University of Technology. Please visit Working at Tilburg University and Working at Eindhoven University of Technology for more information on their respective employment conditions.

JADS

We do cool stuff that matters, with data. The Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (JADS) is a unique cooperation between Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and Tilburg University (TiU). At JADS, we believe that data science can provide answers to society’s complex issues. We provide innovative educational programs, data science research, and support for business and society. With a team of lecturers, students, scientists and entrepreneurs - from a wide range of sectors and disciplines – we work on creating impact with data science. We do this by connecting people, sectors and industries: in the past 5 years we have been working with 300+ organizations on data-related projects. Our main drivers? Doing cool stuff that matters with data. Our location at the former monastery Mariënburg in Den Bosch houses a vibrant campus fully dedicated to data science.