Machine Learning Engineer

On Liftoff's Revenue Engine team, you'll work on statistical models and production systems designed to balance advertiser performance with business goals, while designing experiments to advance the mobile ad tech economy. The Machine Learning Engineer collaborates with a world-class group of engineers and cross-functional partners to translate theory into scalable, production-ready solutions. This role blends rigorous modeling with practical engineering to influence budgeting, margins, and bidding strategies across Liftoff's ecosystem.

Responsibilities

• Build statistical models and production systems to balance advertiser performance with business goals.
• Tune optimization parameters, measure internal competition, and model dynamic environments.
• Design and run experiments to validate theories underpinning the mobile ad tech economy.
• Develop applications in the areas of advertiser budget retention and growth, optimal margin allocation, and bidding innovations.
• Collaborate with a team of world-class engineers with diverse backgrounds as well as peers across the broader company (e.g. Operations, GTM).
• Use strong communication skills (verbal and written) to explain statistical and machine learning concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Be part of an engineering excellence culture through state-of-the-art tools, risk-driven testing, explainable systems, and design/code review.

Requirements

• PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Economics, or a related field.
• Industry experience applying economics or machine learning to large scale problems.
• Solid engineering and coding skills.
• Excellent team communication and collaboration skills.
• Experience with ad tech is a solid plus.

Benefits

• Equity
• Health/vision/dental benefits
• Medical coverage
• Wellness stipends
• Additional country-specific perks

About the Revenue Engine Team

The Revenue Engine team works to understand the fundamental economics of the mobile ad tech marketplace, including the elasticity of demand and the effects of competition. The team comprises machine learning engineers, software engineers, and data analysts who formulate theories, validate them with experiments and analyses, and deploy production systems that improve outcomes for Liftoff and its advertisers.

Location

The preferred location for this role is within California. We are a remote-first company with US hubs in Redwood City, Los Angeles, and New York City.

Travel

We offer several opportunities for in-person team gatherings, including project meetings, regional meetups, and company-wide events. Employees are expected to attend these gatherings at least once per quarter.

Compensation

Liftoff provides a full compensation package that includes equity and health/vision/dental benefits aligned with your country of residence. Base compensation varies based on location and experience.

• SF Bay Area, Los Angeles/Orange County, NYC, Seattle: $235,000 - $275,000
• All other cities and towns in our approved states: $215,000 - $255,000

Agency and third party recruiter notice

Liftoff does not accept unsolicited resumes from individual recruiters or third-party recruiting agencies in response to job postings. No fee will be paid to third parties who submit unsolicited candidates directly to our hiring managers or Recruiting Team. All candidates must be submitted via our Applicant Tracking System by approved Liftoff vendors who have been expressly requested to make a submission by our Recruiting Team for a specific job opening.