Machine Learning Engineer Graduate (Global E-Commerce, User Growth) - PhD 2027 Start

About the Team

The User Growth Algorithm Team for Global E-Commerce powers TikTok's rapid expansion in e-commerce worldwide. We move beyond traditional recommendation systems to innovate promotion algorithms that redefine the global shopping experience. Managing large budgets and massive traffic, we apply advanced algorithmic modeling and operations research to optimize budget allocation for maximum ROI, driving growth in Monthly Active Customers and Gross Merchandise Volume.

Joining our team means your work will impact millions of users' purchasing decisions. Leveraging our unique content-commerce blend, you will tackle challenges involving the joint optimization of content recommendation and real-time incentives.

Role Description

• Develop models to quantify user demand elasticity across different products and coupon offers and implement operations research methods to allocate budgets optimally, aiming to increase GMV and conversion rates.
• Design and implement intelligent global budget allocation and pricing algorithms combining operations research and game theory to efficiently distribute large budgets across billions of users and numerous products.
• Integrate real-time voucher features within recommendation systems spanning short videos, live streams, and marketplaces; eliminate barriers between marketing and recommendation to enable unified decisions on traffic and subsidies.
• Research and apply advanced marketing technologies including causal inference, uplift modeling, reinforcement learning, large language models, and AI agents to enhance user conversion and repeat purchasing.

Qualifications

• Completion or near completion of a PhD in Computer Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Operations Research, or related domains, backed by strong algorithm and data structure skills.
• Solid knowledge in machine learning and deep learning, especially models used in recommendation, advertising, search, or marketing domains.
• Hands-on experience and thorough understanding in at least one of the following: causal inference and uplift modeling (industrial experience preferred); operations research optimization techniques such as linear/integer programming and dynamic programming (experience in budget allocation/pricing algorithms advantageous); search, recommendation, and advertising algorithms including CTR/CVR estimation and multi-objective optimization; frontier AI technologies involving large language models, AI agents, or generative recommendations.
• Strong analytical mindset and business acumen to map complex business challenges into mathematical or algorithmic solutions and lead them through production implementation.
• Preferably, proven research contributions with publications in leading conferences (KDD, NeurIPS, ICML, IJCAI, AAAI) or distinguished results in competitive data mining contests like Kaggle.

Company and Culture

TikTok, a global leader in short-form mobile video, fosters creativity and joy worldwide. With offices in multiple international locations including Singapore, we value innovation, learning, and collaboration. We pursue excellence with curiosity and humility, embracing challenges as opportunities and maintaining an 'Always Day 1' spirit.

Diversity & Inclusion

Committed to an inclusive environment, TikTok values diverse perspectives and unique experiences. We strive to create a workplace reflecting the global communities we engage with, fostering creativity and joy for all.

Additional Information

Successful candidates must commit to onboarding by the end of the year. Availability and graduation dates should be clearly stated in applications.