(General Hire) Research Scientist Intern (Monetization Technology) - 2026 Start (PhD)

TikTok; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 68,191 - 97,120; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid holidays

Paid sick time

Housing allowance for non-remote interns

Job summary

A leading social media platform seeks a PhD intern for the Monetization Technology team in San Jose, California. This role involves developing state-of-the-art applied machine learning projects within TikTok's Ads ecosystem, contributing to future technologies, and exploring immense industry opportunities. Candidates should be pursuing a PhD in Computer Science or a related field, with experience in AI preferred. Interns receive comprehensive benefits including health insurance and paid holidays.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience in an AI research organization is a plus.
• Experience with machine learning projects or systems is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Participate in the development of a large-scale Ads system.
• Develop applied machine learning projects for TikTok ads.
• Own key targeting components in the monetization ecosystem.
• Collaborate with product and business teams on product vision.

Skills

Developing multimodality foundation models

Strong publications record

Education

Currently pursuing a PhD in Computer Science or related field

Job description

Responsibilities

Monetization Technology teams are building the next-generation monetization platforms to help millions of customers grow their businesses, utilizing our products like TikTok. Our team develops a wide variety of advertisements for numerous uses including feeds, live streaming, branding, measurement, targeting, search, vertical solutions, creative solutions, and business integrity.

We are looking for talented individuals to join us for an internship in 2026. Internships at TikTok aim to offer students industry exposure and hands‑on experience. Watch your ambitions become reality as your inspiration brings infinite opportunities at TikTok.

PhD internships at TikTok provide students with the opportunity to actively contribute to our products and research, and to the organization’s future plans and emerging technologies. Our dynamic internship experience blends hands‑on learning, enriching community‑building and development events, and collaboration with industry experts.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis – we encourage you to apply early. Please state your availability clearly in your resume (Start date, End date).

• Participate in the development of a large‑scale Ads system.
• Responsible for the development of state‑of‑the‑art applied machine learning projects.
• Own key targeting components or strategies in the TikTok ads monetization ecosystem.
• Work with product and business teams on product vision.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Currently pursuing a PhD in Computer Science, engineering or quantitative field
• Hands‑on experience of developing multimodality foundation models and work or internship experience in an AI research organization is a plus
• Strong publications record in top conferences or journals (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, etc)

By submitting an application for this role, you accept and agree to our global applicant privacy policy, which may be accessed here: https://careers.tiktok.com/legal/privacy

Job Information

【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Hourly) - Campus Intern

The hourly rate range for this position in the selected city is $60- $60.

Benefits

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Interns have day one access to health insurance, life insurance, wellbeing benefits and more. Interns also receive 10 paid holidays per year and paid sick time (56 hours if hired in first half of year, 40 if hired in second half of year). Interns who are not working 100% remote may also be eligible for housing allowance.

The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:

• Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
• Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
• Exercising sound judgment.

About TikTok

TikTok is the leading destination for short‑form mobile video. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok's global headquarters are in Los Angeles and Singapore, and we also have offices in New York City, London, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.

Why Join Us

Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy - a mission we work towards every day.

We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.

Diversity & Inclusion

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 Accommodation

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://tinyurl.com/RA-request