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TikTok · 2 weeks ago

Research Engineer Graduate Online Architecture- 2026 Start (PhD)

Seattle, WA

Full-time

Onsite

New Grad, Entry Level

$130K/yr - $246K/yr

TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video, and they are seeking a Research Engineer to join their General Architecture team. This role involves conducting research and optimization for TikTok’s ecosystem, focusing on large-scale business architecture and infrastructure to support billions of users worldwide.

Content CreatorsContent DiscoveryMedia and EntertainmentSocial MediaVideo

H1B Sponsor Likely

Responsibilities

Conduct research and optimization for TikTok’s ecosystem, serving billions of users worldwide, supported by globally distributed, ultra-large-scale data center clusters, and the industry’s largest microservice system (over one million distinct services)

Perform data modeling and algorithmic optimization on complex business architecture systems, applying scientific methods to solve key challenges in ultra-large-scale infrastructure and business architecture, including but not limited to capacity forecasting and planning, service and data placement optimization, traffic scheduling optimization, and risk prediction and prevention

Deliver significant business and academic value through architecture optimization:

Achieve substantial cost savings at the world’s largest internet scale

Enhance infrastructure planning and decision-making for global-scale businesses through AI and algorithm capabilities

Enable highly automated and intelligent large-scale architecture governance

Produce research outcomes in real-world frontier architecture scenarios suitable for publication at top-tier academic conferences/journals

Translate research outcomes into engineering solutions deployable in production, achieving a complete loop from theory to practice

Collaborate with architects, infrastructure, and business teams to drive global-scale deployment and adoption of optimization solutions

Continuously explore cutting-edge technologies and methodologies to shape the next 3–5 years of TikTok’s global business architecture evolution

Qualification

PhD in relevant fieldDistributed systems expertiseOptimization algorithms proficiencyMainstream programming languageData modeling experiencePublication recordLarge-scale system optimizationCross-domain collaborationProblem-solving skillsEffective communication

Required

PhD degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, Operations Research, Applied Mathematics, or a related field

Solid research background in distributed systems, large-scale system optimization, or AI for Systems

Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to model planet-scale, complex business and infrastructure systems, abstract key variables and constraints, and clearly articulate solutions through rigorous logical reasoning and effective communication

Proficiency in optimization algorithms (e.g., integer programming, dynamic programming, graph optimization, reinforcement learning) and their application to large-scale optimization problems

Proficiency in at least one mainstream programming language (e.g., Go, Java, C++, Python), with the capability to implement algorithms and models into production systems

Ability to leverage AI tools and automation methods to efficiently accomplish tasks and enhance productivity, with strong motivation to explore cutting-edge technologies and solve complex industrial-scale problems

Preferred

Experience in data modeling and analysis for large-scale systems or business architectures, with the ability to propose feasible optimization solutions based on business and system characteristics

Publication record in top-tier conferences/journals such as OSDI, SOSP, NSDI, SoCC, SIGCOMM, KDD, NeurIPS

Hands-on experience in optimization, scheduling, or resource management for ultra-large-scale production systems

Familiarity with deployment and operations of large-scale distributed systems, and understanding of the challenges in cross-data-center and cross-region architecture optimization

Experience in cross-domain collaboration (architecture, platform, business) to drive complex solutions into production

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) savings plan with company match

Paid parental leave

Short-term and long-term disability coverage

Life insurance

Wellbeing benefits

10 paid holidays per year

10 paid sick days per year

17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure)

Company

TikTok

Glassdoor3.4

TikTok is a short-form video entertainment app and social network platform. It is a sub-organization of ByteDance.

Founded in 2003

Los Angeles, California, USA

10001+ employees

https://www.tiktok.com

H1B Sponsorship

TikTok has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)

Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship

Represents job field similar to this job

Trends of Total Sponsorships

2025 (979)

2024 (601)

2023 (387)

2022 (322)

2021 (133)

2020 (72)