Machine Learning Engineer

• This is a high-impact role where you'll work with other Senior ICs to drive the technical direction, mentor exceptional engineers, and work cross-functionally to build the next generation of ads products. Specifically, you will: • Lead the design and evolution of machine learning models that power ads retrieval, ranking, and auction systems at scale. • Own end to end ML systems, including training pipelines, feature infrastructure, and low latency online inference for real time and batch use cases. • Apply advanced statistical and ML techniques to improve ads relevance, marketplace efficiency, and Seller outcomes. • Define experimentation strategies, success metrics, and evaluation frameworks, and drive iteration through rigorous offline and online testing. • Establish model and system observability through metrics, dashboards, and reliability best practices. • Provide technical leadership through mentorship, design reviews, and raising engineering standards across the Ads+Promos org and Engineering at Whatnot. • Stay current on advances in machine learning and ads auction systems, and drive adoption where they deliver clear impact. • Beyond strong alignment with Whatnot’s cultural values https://careers.whatnot.com/#:~:text=About%20Working%20Here-,Working%20%26%20Whatnot,-Our%20cultural%20values, you’ll bring: • M.S. or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Economics, Statistics, or equivalent professional experience • 8+ years of industry experience building software and ML pipelines/systems, including technical leadership (project/tech lead or equivalent) • Experience in applied statistical and machine learning fields e.g. Ads, search, recommendations, content understanding, natural language processing, and large language models. • Strong proficiency in Python and at least one ML stack (e.g. scikit-learn, PyTorch, LightGBM), plus solid software engineering fundamentals. • Are capable of building scalable systems (we primarily use Python, Elixir, JavaScript) • Solid backend development skills and experience deploying ML models to production (batch or real-time) • Experience with data orchestration frameworks (Dagster, Kubeflow) and feature store design. • Experience with data analysis and capable of conducting deep behavioral data analysis to uncover trends within the complex advertising marketplace. • Excellent product instincts. You think first about users rather than the best technical solution. Ability to translate business/product needs into measurable ML solutions and collaborate across diverse cross-functional teams/stakeholders. • A collaborative mindset — especially with other Senior ML ICs on team, product, data science, and cross-functional ML counterparts — to drive measurable business outcomes. • Bonus: Experience in leadership positions (e.g. Technical Lead or Management). Strategic and technical leadership that raises the bar for engineering excellence.