Search Engineer: ML-Driven Backend & Ranking

TikTok USDS Joint Venture; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 123,000 - 259,000; Full time

Job summary

TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is seeking a backend engineer to join the Search Team and own TikTok's search engine. You will work on full-stack search systems, combining information retrieval with ML methods from NLP, CV, and recommender signals.

This role emphasizes self-direction, curiosity, openness, and problem-solving. Responsibilities include optimizing search quality, aligning with product objectives, and building core systems for query understanding, ranking, and reliability.

Qualifications

• BS degree in CS, CE, or related major.
• 1+ years building backend services for large-scale apps.
• Proficiency in C/C++, Python, Java or Golang.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Optimize search quality to provide the best user experience.
• Apply ML and information retrieval techniques to improve search quality and perception.
• Build core systems for query understanding, ranking, and reliability.

Skills

C/C++

Python

Java

Golang

Team communication

Education

BS degree in Computer Science or Computer Engineering

Tools

Hadoop

Spark

Flink

Job description

TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is seeking a backend engineer to join the Search Team and own TikTok's search engine. You will work on full-stack search systems, combining information retrieval with ML methods from NLP, CV, and recommender signals.

This role emphasizes self-direction, curiosity, openness, and problem-solving. Responsibilities include optimizing search quality, aligning with product objectives, and building core systems for query understanding, ranking, and reliability.