Research Engineer/Scientist(all levels), Efficient Models

TikTok; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 213,000 - 388,000; Full time

Job summary

TikTok is seeking a Research Engineer/Scientist to design and implement efficient large-scale generative AI models, focusing on distillation, compression, and hardware-efficient inference for scalable deployment.

The role emphasizes developing methods and infrastructure to transfer capabilities from foundation models into smaller, efficient models, enabling training, optimization, and deployment at scale in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• BS in Computer Science or related field, or equivalent experience.
• Experience with efficient models and acceleration techniques.
• Experience training generative AI or LLMs using PyTorch and JAX.
• Strong communication and collaboration in fast-paced environments.

Responsibilities

• Develop efficient algorithms and architectures for large-scale generative and multimodal models, using distillation, quantization, and other methods to improve efficiency.
• Advance scalable generative modeling approaches, including diffusion and autoregressive models, with focus on acceleration and efficiency.

Skills

Communication

Collaboration

GenAI research

Education

B.S. in Computer Science or related fields

Ph.D. in GenAI/ MLSys

Tools

PyTorch

JAX

Job description

Responsibilities

About the Team

The Vision-Applied Research team focuses on applied research in Generative AI and CV/Multimodal Understanding, and delivering intelligent solutions to TikTok products, enabling users to make and share creative content in a much easier way. The team has research groups dedicated to generative models for content creation, image generation, video synthesis, intelligent image/video editing, and virtual humans.

The team is looking for a Research Engineer / Scientist who can take initiatives in designing and implementing efficient models for large-scale generative AI, with a particular emphasis on large model distillation and compression. The candidate will work on developing methods and infrastructure for transferring capabilities from foundation models into smaller, more efficient models, enabling scalable training, optimization, and deployment. Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to, distillation frameworks, model acceleration, hardware-efficient inference, and their applications.

Responsibilities

• Develop efficient algorithms and architectures for large-scale generative and multimodal models, using techniques such as step distillation, cfg distillation, quantization, and other methods to improve model efficiency (e.g., image generation, video generation, VLM).
• Advance scalable generative modeling approaches, including diffusion and autoregressive models, with a focus on acceleration and efficiency.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• B.S. in Computer Science or related fields, or equivalent experience
• Expertise in efficient models with deep understanding of computational bottlenecks and acceleration methods.
• Proficiency in training generative AI or LLM models using widely adopted frameworks and tools such as PyTorch and JAX.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills in fast-paced environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Ph.D. in GenAI, MLSys or equivalent experience
• Extensive research experiences in broad GenAI, MLSys, LLM areas.
• Proven experiences in at least one of the following areas: image/video generation and editing; model compression (e.g., quantization, step/cfg distillation); efficient architectures (e.g., MoE, window attention); efficient model design; or reinforcement learning training methods (e.g., RLHF, DPO, GRPO).

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

Job Information

【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually)

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $212800 - $387600 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.

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure).

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:

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