Machine learning Engineer - Agentic Retrieval

Pantera Capital; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 151,800 - 332,200; Full time

Job summary

Zoom is seeking a Machine Learning Engineer to join the Agentic Retrieval team, building core retrieval and reasoning systems powering the AI Companion for enterprise knowledge search and actionable answers. You will design scalable search, RAG pipelines, and integration of AI agents in production, collaborating with product and infra teams to ship trustworthy capabilities at scale.

The role demands 5+ years in ML, distributed systems, and information retrieval, with proficiency in Python or

Qualifications

• Master’s degree or higher in CS, AI, or related field.
• 5+ years in machine learning, search infra, or distributed systems.
• Experience building and operating large-scale search or data platforms in production.
• Experience building or integrating RAG systems with LLMs in production.
• Proficiency in Python, Go, Java, C#, or C++.
• Strong information retrieval fundamentals: inverted index, embeddings, hybrid retrieval.
• Strong system design skills for scale, latency, and cost.

Responsibilities

• Designing and implementing scalable retrieval systems including vector search, hybrid search, and structured query planning.
• Designing and optimizing Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipelines for multi-step, tool-using AI agents.
• Developing ranking, relevance modeling, and evaluation frameworks to improve search quality and grounding.
• Building indexing pipelines that transform heterogeneous enterprise data into unified, retrieval-ready representations.
• Building entity extraction and NLP pipelines that support agentic reasoning over enterprise content.
• Partnering with product, infrastructure, and applied research teams to ship production-grade AI capabilities.

Skills

Python

Go

Java

C#

C++

information retrieval

system design

RAG

distributed systems

search infrastructure

Education

Master's degree or higher in Computer Science or related field

Job description

What you can expect

Zoom is looking for a Machine Learning Engineer to join our Agentic Retrieval team. You will design and build the core retrieval and reasoning systems that power Zoom’s AI Companion — enabling AI agents to search, reason over, and act on enterprise knowledge to deliver high- quality, trustworthy, and actionable answers at scale.

About the Team

The Agentic Retrieval team sits within Zoom’s GenAI Engineering organization and is responsible for building a multi-tenant, permission-aware retrieval platform. We operate at the intersection of distributed systems, machine learning, and large language models — powering search and answer generation across meetings, chat, docs, and third-party enterprise applications through a layered API architecture (keyword search, natural language search, and agentic RAG-based answer generation).

Responsibilities

• Designing and implementing scalable retrieval systems including vector search, hybrid search (keyword + embedding + reranking), and structured query planning.
• Designing and optimize Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipelines for multi-step, tool-using AI agents.
• Developing ranking, relevance modeling, and evaluation frameworks to improve search quality and answer grounding.
• Building indexing pipelines that transform heterogeneous enterprise data into unified, retrieval-ready representation.
• Building entity extraction and NLP pipelines that support agentic reasoning over enterprise content.
• Partnering with product, infrastructure, and applied research teams to ship production- grade AI capabilities.

What we’re looking for

• Master’s degree or higher in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Distributed Systems, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in machine learning, search infrastructure, information retrieval, or distributed systems
• Strong hands-on experience building and operating large-scale search or data platforms in production environments.
• Have experience building or integrating RAG systems and LLM-based applications in production.
• Possess proficiency in one or more of: Python, Go, Java, C#, or C++.
• Solid understanding of information retrieval fundamentals (inverted index, ranking, embeddings, hybrid retrieval).
• Strong system design skills with the ability to reason about scale, reliability, latency, and cost trade-off

Salary Range or On Target Earnings

Minimum:

$151,800.00

Maximum:

$332,200.00

In addition to the base salary and/or OTE listed Zoom has a Total Direct Compensation philosophy that takes into consideration; base salary, bonus and equity value.

Note: Starting pay will be based on a number of factors and commensurate with qualifications & experience.

We also have a location based compensation structure; there may be a different range for candidates in this and other locations.

Ways of Working

Our structured hybrid approach is centered around our offices and remote work environments. The work style of each role, Hybrid, Remote, or In-Person is indicated in the job description/posting.

Benefits

As part of our award-winning workplace culture and commitment to delivering happiness, our benefits program offers a variety of perks, benefits, and options to help employees maintain their physical, mental, emotional, and financial health; support work-life balance; and contribute to their community in meaningful ways.

About Us

Zoomies help people stay connected so they can get more done together. We set out to build the best collaboration platform for the enterprise, and today help people communicate better with products like Zoom Contact Center, Zoom Phone, Zoom Events, Zoom Apps, Zoom Rooms, and Zoom Webinars.

We’re problem-solvers, working at a fast pace to design solutions with our customers and users in mind. Find room to grow with opportunities to stretch your skills and advance your career in a collaborative, growth-focused environment.

Our Commitment

At Zoom, we believe great work happens when people feel supported and empowered. We’re committed to fair hiring practices that ensure every candidate is evaluated based on skills, experience, and potential. If you require an accommodation during the hiring process, let us know—we’re here to support you at every step.

We welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives including qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records and any qualified applicants requiring reasonable accommodations in accordance with the law.

If you need assistance navigating the interview process due to a medical disability, please submit an Accommodations Request Form and someone from our team will reach out soon. This form is solely for applicants who require an accommodation due to a qualifying medical disability. Non-accommodation-related requests, such as application follow-ups or technical issues, will not be addressed.

Think of this opportunity as a marathon, not a sprint! We're building a strong team at Zoom, and we're looking for talented individuals to join us for the long haul. No need to rush your application – take your time to ensure it's a good fit for your career goals.

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