Senior Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Agentic AI Platform (Ads Ranking)
About this role
The day-to-day work for this Senior Staff Machine Learning Engineer involves defining and accelerating how Reddit leverages agentic AI to enhance existing machine learning models and modeling workflows. This role is centered on modeling leverage—improving both the quality and velocity of models—rather than focusing on building general infrastructure. The engineer will act as a technical leader across the entire modeling loop, employing modern AI-assisted development systems to make model development more effective and rigorous across the organization.
Key responsibilities include developing advanced ML models and agentic workflows to aid teams in the design, training, evaluation, and improvement processes. This involves using tools like Claude and Cursor to investigate model behavior, automate analysis, and refine code and experiments. A significant part of the work involves building reliable loops for data analysis, feature development, and hyperparameter optimization. The engineer will also establish evaluation harnesses to measure model outcomes alongside agent/workflow quality, ensuring reproducibility and cost control.
This position exists to redefine the approach to ML engineering by combining deep ML fundamentals with agentic AI techniques. It is designed for an individual who is driven to multiply team impact by applying advanced AI to the core modeling process. The ideal candidate possesses strong technical leadership skills and a capacity to set the technical direction for modeling efforts across various teams.
What you will do
- Develop advanced ML models and the agentic workflows necessary for teams to design, train, evaluate, and iterate on models.
- Utilize AI-assisted development systems, such as Claude and Cursor, to investigate model behavior and generate testable hypotheses.
- Automate repetitive analysis tasks to improve the efficiency of the development cycle.
- Build robust loops for data and label analysis, feature development, and embedding creation.
- Design comprehensive evaluation harnesses to measure both model performance and the quality of the agentic workflows.
- Analyze model outcomes, regressions, cost, and latency to inform iterative improvements.
- Partner with various teams to connect modeling enhancements directly to user and business outcomes.
- Set the technical direction for modeling practices and mentor engineers on best practices in AI-assisted engineering.
What you need
- Requires a minimum of nine years of experience in machine learning engineering, applied ML, or a related domain, demonstrating substantial production impact.
- Must possess Senior Staff-level technical leadership capabilities and a documented history of influencing technical direction across multiple teams.
- Deep expertise in modeling fundamentals, including data, objectives, architectures, optimization, evaluation, and experimentation is essential.
- Must have concrete examples of using agentic AI or AI coding tools to achieve tangible improvements in ML outcomes.
- Ability to design guardrails and evaluations that ensure autonomous or semi-autonomous workflows maintain trustworthiness.
- Strong coding proficiency in Python and fluency with modern machine learning frameworks and data tooling is required.
- Clear communication skills and a collaborative, low-ego approach to technical leadership are necessary for success.
Nice to have
- Experience with agentic AI development
Benefits
- 100% remote opportunity
- Competitive salary and equity options
- Comprehensive health benefits (medical, dental, vision)
- Workplace perks (home office set up stipend)
- Generous 401k matching
- Flexible vacation policy
- Paid parental leave (4+ months)
- Family planning support
- Paid volunteer time off
Skills and tech stack
Questions candidates ask
What is the remote policy?
This role offers a 100% remote opportunity. Reddit maintains four office locations for hybrid or onsite work preferences in NY, SF, LA, and Chicago.
What is the compensation structure?
The base salary range for this position is between $292,500 and $409,500 USD. In addition to base salary, candidates are eligible to receive equity in the form of restricted stock units.
What are the primary tools used in this role?
The role utilizes tools such as Claude and Cursor, along with strong proficiency in Python and modern ML frameworks and data tooling.
How is technical leadership demonstrated?
Technical leadership is demonstrated by setting technical direction across teams and mentoring engineers to raise the bar for modeling rigor and AI-assisted engineering.