PhD Student Development AI‑Native Development Models & Virtual AI Agents (f/m/d)

Work environment

Volkswagen AG is actively shaping the transformation of Technical Development towards digital, data-driven, and AI-supported ways of working. In the AI Competence Center of Technical Development in Wolfsburg, you will work in an interdisciplinary environment on the question of how the traditional product development process can evolve into an AI-native development model. Particular focus is placed on clear rules for governance, security, traceability, and collaboration between humans and AI. In addition to the workplace in Wolfsburg, occasional presence at the supervising institute is planned in order to strengthen the exchange with the professor and fellow doctoral candidates.

Possible Tasks within this Role

• Designing and scientifically developing an AI-native development process as a successor to traditional methodologies, including consideration of the necessary organizational changes
• Defining the future human role within the virtual team (e.g., orchestrator / monitor / human‑in‑the‑loop), including skill/competency models, governance principles, as well as requirements for security and explainability
• Modeling and designing virtual AI agent teams: roles, capabilities, decision logics, escalation mechanisms, human‑AI collaboration and agent‑agent collaboration, including auditability

The final doctoral topic is defined together with the professor. The prerequisite for the cooperation is the confirmation of supervision as well as a confirmed delimitation of topics by the professor of a university or research institution entitled to confer a doctorate.

Qualification Requirements

• Good to very good university degree qualifying for doctoral studies, e.g., in Computer Science, Business/Informatics, Engineering with a focus on AI, Human‑Computer Interaction, or a comparable field of study
• Solid knowledge of Artificial Intelligence (e.g., ML/Deep Learning, fundamentals of LLMs, or multi‑agent approaches) and interest in applying these in socio‑technical systems
• Understanding of software and development processes (e.g., CI/CD, MLOps, process modeling), ideally with reference to complex product/system landscapes
• Initial knowledge/experience desirable in: digitalization methods, vehicle development processes, agile methods, change/transformation work
• German language level C1 and English language level B2
• Strong interest in organizational development and AI‑driven transformation, as well as enjoyment of interdisciplinary collaboration
• Analytical thinking skills, structured and independent way of working
• Strong communication skills and high level of initiative for cross‑functional process analysis

Keywords

Dissertation, AI‑Native Development Process, AI Governance Research, Future of Work Research, Multi-Agent Systems, Socio‑Technical Systems, Agile Transformation Research, Explainable AI (XAI)