Research Scientist Project Intern (Enterprise AI Agent) - 2026 Start (PhD)
TikTok USDS Joint Venture
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
Qualifications
- Pursuing a PhD in CS or related technical discipline.
- Expertise in AI Agents, Reinforcement Learning, or Self-Improving Systems.
- Strong Python programming; proficiency in one of Rust/C++/Go.
Responsibilities
- Conduct cutting-edge research in self-improving agents, evolutionary optimization, and multi-agent systems to enable autonomous code generation, system maintenance, and decision-making.
- Formulate novel research ideas, design methodologies, conduct experiments, and lead papers for top-tier AI/ML conferences.
- Investigate agentic self-evolution using proprietary, compliance-restricted datasets (USDS), solving data safety and memory optimization challenges.
- Develop robust evaluation frameworks to measure operational impact of agentic solutions in engineering and growth environments.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
About the team
We are seeking an exceptional Research Scientist Intern to join our team to pioneer the next generation of Enterprise Agentic Solutions and Self-Evolving AI Agents. This role bridges cutting-edge research with production impact. You will work with proprietary internal datasets (including USDS and compliance-restricted environments) to design, evaluate, and deploy autonomous agents that offload routine workflows in engineering development, operations (DevOps/SRE), and product growth. Your goal is to deliver measurable speedups in project execution, significantly reduce operational expenditure, and publish high-impact research papers on enterprise agentic architectures.
As a Project Intern, you will contribute to impactful short-term projects and gain hands‑on experience in a fast‑paced, professional environment. This internship offers the opportunity to develop practical skills, apply your knowledge to real‑world challenges, and explore your career interests.
- Conduct cutting‑edge research in self‑improving agents, evolutionary optimization, and multi‑agent systems to enable autonomous code generation, system maintenance, and decision‑making.
- Formulate novel research ideas, design rigorous methodologies, conduct experiments, and lead papers for top‑tier AI/ML conferences.
- Investigate methodology for agentic self‑evolution using proprietary, compliance‑restricted datasets (USDS), solving challenges around data safety, memory optimization, and long‑horizon runtime stability.
- Develop robust evaluation frameworks to measure the concrete operational impact (e.g., runtime efficiency, task completion speedup, labor cost offloading) of agentic solutions in engineering and growth environments.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Currently pursuing a PhD in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
- Expertise in one or more of the following research domains: AI Agents & LLM Tool Use / Harness Engineering, Reinforcement Learning & Evolutionary Algorithms / Genetic Programming, Code Generation, Automated Software Engineering, or Self‑Improving Systems
- Strong implementation skills in Python, paired with system‑level language proficiency (Rust, C++, or Go).
Preferred Qualifications:
- Deep research exposure to iterative self‑evolution paradigms (e.g., SGPO, recursive code improvement, execution‑guided synthesis).
- Experience conducting research in restricted/internal data environments or handling compliance‑sensitive execution loops.
- Demonstrated history of bridging high‑impact theoretical research with rapid, functional open‑source or production demos.
TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is dedicated to the safety and security of millions of Americans who create, discover, and connect with what they love on the apps we operate. The Joint Venture has been established in compliance with the Executive Order signed by President Trump on September 25, 2025. Our foundation is a comprehensive data privacy and cybersecurity program we operate under defined safeguards to protect national security and secure U.S. user data, apps and the algorithm. We safeguard the U.S. content ecosystem, holding decision‑making authority for trust and safety policies and moderation. USDS Joint Venture helps ensure Americans can continue to express their creativity, discover new hobbies and interests, and build thriving communities and businesses on a global scale.
On‑site presence across teams allows the company to operate with greater speed, alignment, and agility — especially in areas like real‑time decision‑making, team development, and integrated execution. As such, the company is shifting from a hybrid work model to a fully in‑person schedule up to 5 days a week.
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.
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.
USDS 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/USDS-RA.
The hourly rate range for this position in the selected city is $60- $60.
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.
- 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.
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