Principal Applied Scientist

2 days ago Be among the first 25 applicants

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.

• 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.

• Experience:
  
  7+ 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 (Tensor Flow, PyTorch, Lang Chain, Llama Index).
• Scalability & Cloud:
  Experience with distributed computing, cloud ML platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure), and real‑time AI inference.

• 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.

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: $220,000 - $260,000

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.

Viant Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: DSP) is a leader in CTV and AI‑powered programmatic advertising, dedicated to driving innovation in digital marketing. Viant’s omnichannel platform built for CTV allows marketers to plan, execute and measure their campaigns with unmatched precision and efficiency. With the launch of Viant

AI, Viant is building the future of fully autonomous advertising solutions, empowering advertisers to achieve their boldest goals. Viant was recently awarded Best AI‑Powered Advertising Solution and Best Demand‑Side Platform by Mar Tech Breakthrough, Great Place to Work® certification and received the Business Intelligence Group’s AI Excellence Award. Learn more at

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…