The greatest challenge in the energy transition as a whole is the stability and reliability of the energy grid. To create a stable grid we need holistic insights, for which the data from energy markets, the control domain, and power and energy systems must be integrated. This is why Delft AI Energy Lab and the Vienna-based Austrian Institute of Technology have launched the joint ‘AI research in energy system planning and operations’ programme. As a postdoc, you will get the unique opportunity to develop your own vision and research line within the scope of the programme, in collaboration with our academic staff.

Typically, the domains largely operate separately, posing serious challenges to stability and availability. You will, therefore, create and conduct research geared to the development of a data-centric platform for energy system planning and operation. You may also integrate your previous research. Within the joint programme, six PhD researchers will be working on detailed research projects. You will integrate their research to enable data-centric modelling of the grid. Facilitating collaboration, you will organise workshops in which the PhDs present their research and findings. You will also coach and mentor three of them, for which you will be travelling to Vienna, where they are based. We currently recruit also for these three PhD projects  PhD AI-based algorithms for EV charging scheduling  Vienna, Austria and PhD AI-based algorithms for Flexible Energy Systems | Vienna, Austria

You will join our internationally diverse, and dynamic team of 20 PhD candidates, Master students and academic staff at Delft AI Energy Lab. We enable cross-faculty research with high scientific impact. As experts bridging research ‘in’ and ‘with’ AI, we share a drive to accelerate the energy transition in an open and friendly atmosphere. We are there for each other and will give you all the support and coaching you need to evolve and develop your academic career.

Learn more about AIT and Delft AI Energy Lab.

You are highly motivated to help accelerate the energy transition with groundbreaking research to resolve the technical challenges of net-zero energy and power systems. Working towards meaningful team results, you harness your communication and organisational skills to teach, coach and motivate your team of PhD students. To facilitate your research, you are able to reach out to relevant stakeholders and build your network of industry partners. In addition, you enjoy disseminating your findings in relevant communities and at conferences.

You also have:

• A PhD in Power Systems, Energy Markets, Energy Systems, or Applied Machine Learning in any of these domains.
• Demonstrable competence in AI, computer/data science, machine learning, energy system modelling, dynamic systems, power systems, or another relevant field.
• A good command of English, because you will be working in an international environment.

This position is a 3 years assignment, starting with a 1-year contract.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities. The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, a discount on health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international candidates with family, we offer the Coming to Delft Service and Partner Career Advice to assist you with your relocation. An International Children's Centre offers childcare and there is an international primary school.  

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

The AIT is Austria's largest research and technology organisation, significantly impacting socially relevant future infrastructure topics. AIT is positioned as an international key player in the research and scientific community, leading in many infrastructure topics worldwide. At the AIT Center for Energy, over 250 experts are developing sustainable solutions for our future energy system under the leadership of Wolfgang Hribernik. The Center combines longstanding experience and scientific excellence with high-quality laboratory infrastructure and a global network to offer companies innovative applied research services, providing them with a competitive edge in this promising market. The thematic portfolio of the Center for Energy focuses on three key systems: sustainable energy supply systems, decarbonisation of industrial processes and facilities, and innovative technologies and solutions for cities and the built environment.

TU Delft is a top-tier university and is exceedingly active in the field of Artificial intelligence, and TU Delft's campus has strong expertise in energy systems. Energy systems are the backbone of our modern society but are becoming increasingly complex and challenging to operate as renewable energy, heating and transport sectors are integrated into the system. It's crucial that energy systems are sustainable, reliable and effective, now and in the future. Recognising the transformational power of AI, TU Delft has launched a large cross-faculty AI initiative where you will affiliate with the Delft AI Energy Lab, focusing on developing AI-based algorithms for operating sustainable and dynamical energy systems and the Intelligent Electrical Power Grid section.

AIT and TU Delft are launching the "AI research in energy system operations and planning" program forming a new expert team combining the strength of both institutions. In this program, we combine ground-breaking AI methods with the reliable theory of the physical energy system. The area of data-driven scientific computing promises to combine statistics, time-frequency analysis, low-dimensional model reductions, and other techniques to extract information from data. With AI, we make such information useful for managing and planning complex energy systems. At TU Delft, your academic supervisor will be Assistant Professor Dr. Jochen Cremer.

Faculty Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

The Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EEMCS) brings together three disciplines - electrical engineering, mathematics and computer science. Combined, they reinforce each other and are the driving force behind the technology we use in our daily lives. Technology such as the electricity grid, which our faculty is helping to make future-proof. We are also working on a world in which humans and computers reinforce each other. We are mapping out disease processes using single cell data, and using mathematics to simulate gigantic ash plumes after a volcanic eruption. There is plenty of room here for ground-breaking research. We educate innovative engineers and have excellent labs and facilities that underline our strong international position. In total, more than 1,100 employees and 4,000 students work and study in this innovative environment.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science.