Staff Applied Scientist

Vianttechnology; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully paid health insurance

Paid parental leave

Unlimited PTO

Job summary

Vianttechnology in Irvine, California is searching for a Staff Applied Scientist to lead innovative research in applied machine learning. This role involves shaping AI strategy for Viant’s products and driving the implementation of advanced models in NLP and deep learning, while collaborating with engineers to deploy these solutions.

The ideal candidate has a strong foundation in AI techniques, technical leadership experience, and the ability to publish impactful research. Competitive salary and robust benefits, including fully paid health insurance, are offered.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of experience building and deploying machine learning models.
• Ability to lead complex ML projects from research to production.
• At least two peer-reviewed publications in a relevant AI domain.

Responsibilities

• Lead AI strategy and vision for applied ML.
• Conduct research in NLP and deep learning for production.
• Develop and deploy ML models with engineers.
• Mentor applied scientists and ML engineers.

Skills

Machine learning models deployment

Technical leadership in ML

Deep learning and NLP

Python programming

Experience with distributed computing

Education

Masters or PhD in Computer Science or related

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

AWS

GCP

Azure

Job description

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Viant’s Machine Learning team is at the forefront of transforming the Ad Tech industry through cutting-edge machine learning and AI-driven automation. By eliminating manual processes in digital ad creation, optimization, and measurement, we build autonomous, scalable systems that process hundreds of millions of events daily.

We are seeking an exceptional Staff Applied Scientist to drive groundbreaking innovation in applied machine learning. In this role, you will lead end-to-end AI strategy, shape the applied science roadmap, and develop next-generation models in NLP, deep learning, and large-scale AI systems. Your expertise will push the boundaries of AI capabilities, delivering measurable business impact while fostering a research-driven, data-centric culture at Viant.

THE DAY-TO-DAY

• Lead and Define AI Strategy – Set the vision for applied ML research and AI-driven decision-making across Viant’s products and services.
• Drive High-Impact Research – Conduct advanced research in NLP, RL, LLMs, and deep learning, publishing in top-tier conferences while applying findings to real-world production systems.
• Architect and Deploy ML at Scale – Develop, optimize, and deploy high-throughput, low-latency ML models, collaborating with engineers to bring solutions into production.
• Innovate in Generative AI & Causal ML – Explore novel AI techniques, such as LLMs, reinforcement learning, and causal inference, to enhance targeting, personalization, and attribution models.
• Experimentation and Validation – Design, run, and analyze A/B experiments to test ML-driven strategies, ensuring data-driven decision-making.
• Mentor and Influence – Provide technical leadership for a team of applied scientists and ML engineers, fostering a culture of innovation and excellence.

MUST HAVE

• Experience: 4+ years of experience building and deploying machine learning models at scale.
• Technical Leadership: Demonstrated ability to lead complex, high-ambiguity ML projects from research to production.
• Academic & Industry Recognition: Masters + At least two peer-reviewed publications in deep learning, NLP, or a related AI domain or a PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Statistics, or a related quantitative field.
• Deep Expertise in ML & AI: Strong foundation in deep learning, NLP, generative AI, and causal inference.
• Programming & Frameworks: Proficiency in Python and deep learning frameworks (TensorFlow, PyTorch, LangChain, Llama Index).
• Scalability & Cloud: Experience with distributed computing, cloud ML platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure), and real-time AI inference.

GREAT TO HAVE

• Industry Impact: Publications at top-tier ML/NLP conferences (NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, ACL, EMNLP, NAACL, AAAI).
• Ad Tech Expertise: Experience in digital advertising, real-time bidding, or audience modeling.
• Generative AI Applications: Hands-on experience with LLMs and multimodal AI applications.
• Optimization & Personalization: Strong background in reinforcement learning, dynamic pricing, or recommendation systems.

LIFE AT VIANT

Investing in our employee’s professional growth is important to us, but so is investing in their well-being. That’s why Viant was voted one of the best places to work and some of our favorite employee benefits include fully paid health insurance, paid parental leave and unlimited PTO and more.

Base compensation range: $180,000 - $220,000

In accordance with California law, the range provided is Viant’s reasonable estimate of the compensation for this role. Final title and compensation for the position will be based on several factors including work experience and education.

About Viant

Viant Technology (NASDAQ: DSP) is an exclusively buy-side, AI-powered advertising platform purpose‑built for CTV. Viant uniquely combines proprietary content intelligence, household‑level identity resolution, and person‑level attention signals to connect advertisers with real customers and drive measurable outcomes across the open internet. Through its award-winning AI solutions, Viant is building the future of autonomous advertising, where AI doesn't just assist the campaign, it delivers real results. Learn more at viantinc.com.

Viant is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of merit. Viant prohibits unlawful discrimination against employees or applicants based on race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles), religion, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, reproductive health decision making, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, military status, veteran status, uniformed service member status, sexual orientation, transgender identity, citizenship status, pregnancy, or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws. Viant also prohibits unlawful discrimination based on the perception that anyone has any of those characteristics, or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics.