Senior Machine Learning Engineer, TikTok Core Feed Recommendation - User Growth

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TikTok Core Feed Recommendation team sits in the center of TikTok, and designs, implements, and improves the core recommendation algorithm that powers the "for you" feed, "following" feed, etc. of the TikTok app. The recommendation system we built connects hundreds of millions of users with relevant content out of billions of videos in real-time, and inspires high-quality content creation for millions of creators on the platform.

The User Growth team is an essential pillar of the Core Feed Recommendation team, directly responsible for implementing and refining new user acquisition and retention strategies. Our team is committed to achieving TikTok's ultimate goals through developing high-performance models and sound strategies. We take pride in our rigorous approach to applied research, innovative system design, and steadfast pragmatism.

We are looking for strong research scientists and engineers at all levels, who are excited about growing their business understanding, building highly scalable and reliable software, and partnering across disciplines with global teams, in pursuit of excellence.

Responsibilities

• Implement machine learning, recommendation, and causal inference algorithms at large scales to optimize and improve new user acquisition efficiency and user retention across the whole user life cycle.
• Work cross-functionally with product managers, data scientists, and product engineers to understand insights, formulate problems, design and refine machine learning algorithms, and further drive the exciting growth of global TikTok users.
• Analyze and pinpoint specific issues affecting user growth across various regions and markets, and utilize algorithmic levers for targeted optimization.
• Run regular A/B tests, perform analysis, and iterate algorithms accordingly.
• Have a good understanding of end-to-end machine learning systems. Work with infra teams on improving efficiency and stability.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Strong programming skills in Python and/or C/C++, and a deep understanding of data structures and algorithms.
• Familiar with the architecture and implementation of at least one mainstream machine learning programming framework (TensorFlow/Pytorch/MXNet).
• Possess keen data insights and clear organization skills, capable of addressing various problems and challenges in growth scenarios.
• Good communication and teamwork skills, be passionate about learning new techniques and taking on challenging problems.

Preferred Qualifications

• Minimum of 3 years of experience in one or more of the areas: recommender systems, machine learning, deep learning, pattern recognition, data mining, computer vision, NLP, content understanding or multimodal machine learning
• Prior industry experience with the main components of recommendation systems (retrieval, ranking, re-ranking, cold-start, etc.) is a plus but not required.
• Publications at main conferences such as KDD, NeurIPS, WWW, SIGIR, WSDM, CIKM, ICLR, ICML, IJCAI, AAAI, RecSys or related conferences.
• Strong tracking record of success in data mining, machine learning, or ACM-ICPC/NOI/IOI competitions.
• Participation in public/open-source AI-related projects which are of high visibility.

TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.

TikTok is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://shorturl.at/cdpT2

Job Information

[For Pay Transparency] Compensation Description (annually)

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $194000 - $355000 annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units.

Our company benefits are designed to convey company culture and values, to create an efficient and inspiring work environment, and to support our employees to give their best in both work and life. We offer the following benefits to eligible employees:

We cover 100% premium coverage for employee medical insurance, approximately 75% premium coverage for dependents and offer a Health Savings Account(HSA) with a company match. As well as Dental, Vision, Short/Long term Disability, Basic Life, Voluntary Life and AD&D insurance plans. In addition to Flexible Spending Account(FSA) Options like Health Care, Limited Purpose and Dependent Care.

Our time off and leave plans are: 10 paid holidays per year plus 17 days of Paid Personal Time Off (PPTO) (prorated upon hire and increased by tenure) and 10 paid sick days per year as well as 12 weeks of paid Parental leave and 8 weeks of paid Supplemental Disability.

We also provide generous benefits like mental and emotional health benefits through our EAP and Lyra. A 401K company match, gym and cellphone service reimbursements. The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.