Senior Software Engineer, Ads Infra - Big Data - USDS

TikTok USDS Joint Venture; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 178,000 - 342,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, & vision insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid parental leave

Short-term & long-term disability

Life insurance

Wellbeing benefits

10 paid holidays per year

10 paid sick days per year

17 days of Paid Personal Time

Job summary

TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC in Los Angeles is seeking a Software Engineer to help build scalable big data and machine learning infrastructure for Ads. You will work on large-scale data processing frameworks and storage systems, collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver reliable, high-performance infrastructure.

Required is a strong background in computer science with 3+ years in big data, plus hands-on experience with Hadoop/Spark/Kafka and related tools.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or above in computer science or related technical disciplines.
• 3+ years of hands-on experience in big data processing and storage frameworks (Hadoop, Flink, Spark, Kafka, Hive, HBase, Redis, RocksDB, etc.).
• Strong CS fundamentals (coding, algorithms, data structures, software design).
• Ability to think critically and communicate solutions clearly.
• Effective communication and a sense of ownership and drive.

Responsibilities

• Drive projects for building and operating innovative big data computing frameworks and storage systems for Ads serving and ML systems.
• Communicate cross-functionally with teams and stakeholders to advance engineering efforts.
• Lead innovation, introducing new ideas and technologies.

Skills

Big data processing

Distributed systems

CS fundamentals

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree or above in CS or related field

Tools

Hadoop

Spark

Kafka

Hive

HBase

Job description

Responsibilities

About the team The ads system at TikTok operates on a massive scale and serves millions of advertisers, clients and influencers across the world. The quality of the ads system highly depends on the ability to handle massive data, and machine learning is widely used to improve the quality of our ads. The USDS Ads Infra team is responsible for building highly efficient, scalable and stable infrastructure to support Ads machine learning, ranking and big data systems.

We are seeking innovative Software Engineers to join our team. You will drive key technical projects and play a pivotal role in elevating our engineering capabilities.

• Drive projects committed to building and operating innovative big data computing frameworks and storage systems to empower large-scale Ads serving and machine learning systems.
• Communicate cross-functionally across various teams, organizations and internal and external stakeholders to drive engineering efforts.
• Drive the innovation efforts, and bring in new ideas and technologies.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or above, major in computer science or related technical disciplines.
• 3+ years of hands-on experience in big data processing and storage frameworks, e.g. Hadoop, Flink, Spark, Kafka, Hive, HBase, Redis, RocksDB, etc.
• Strong Computer Science fundamentals (coding, algorithms, data structures, software design) and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to think critically and to formulate solutions to problems in a clear and concise way;
• Effective communication skills and a sense of ownership and drive.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in Ads domain.
• Experience with building large-scale ranking and machine learning infrastructure.
• Experience of Peta Byte level data processing.

About USDS

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.

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.

USDS Reasonable Accommodation

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

Job Information

【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually)

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $177688 - $341734 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.