Mid Level Lead Software Engineer Jobs

INTRODUCTION

The AIGE (AI-Generated Effects) team is building AI-native creative tools that enable TikTok creators to turn natural-language and multimodal ideas into high-quality, interactive effects. By combining agentic AI, multimodal foundation models, generative 2D/3D technologies, and professional effect-authoring tools, we aim to make advanced effect creation simple and accessible to everyone—significantly narrowing the gap between an idea and a polished, playable creative experience. We are looking for a Tech Lead AI Software Engineer to join the TikTok AIGE team! Working at the intersection of Generative AI and Graphics, you will set the technical direction and own the end-to-end delivery of the next-generation AI Effect Generation system. You will partner with product, design, engineering, and AI/ML teams to turn ambiguous creator and platform needs into reliable technologies and intuitive experiences, from early research and prototyping through launch and long-term evolution, empowering millions of TikTok creators.

Responsibilities

- Define the technical vision and roadmap for TikTok's AR Effect Generation AI system, identifying high-impact research opportunities and land in impactful TikTok product features.
- Own the end-to-end architecture and development of key AI Effect Generation system, from problem discovery and technical design to implementation, rollout, and long-term maintenance; across data collection, context engineering, evaluation, and product integration.
- Lead the research and productization of generative and agentic AI techniques for visual, interactive, and 3D content creation, integrating multimodal models with graphics engines and creator workflows while balancing quality, controllability, latency, reliability, safety, and delivery speed.
- Establish robust experimentation, evaluation, and observability practices—including offline metrics, staged rollouts, A/B experiments, tracing, and quality monitoring, use online results to guide future research and product decisions.
- Collaborate with product, design, engineering, and AI/ML partners to translate ambiguous creator and platform needs into clear technical strategies, align stakeholders on trade-offs, and deliver measurable user impact.
- Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineers and researchers, identify reusable abstractions across projects, raise engineering and research standards, and foster a culture of ownership, collaboration, and innovation.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

- B.S. or M.S. in Computer Science or a related technical field, with 5 years of relevant industry experience; 2+ years of experience working with LLM/AIGC empowered products or tools
- Strong foundation in data structures, algorithms, and system design, with proficiency in at least one of the following programming languages: JavaScript/TypeScript, C/C++, or Python.
- Familiarity with modern web front-end technologies such as TypeScript, JavaScript, React, or similar frameworks.
- Demonstrated experience leading the technical design and end-to-end delivery of complex, cross-functional AI or software products, including taking ambiguous or 0-to-1 initiatives into production.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain technical trade-offs and AI system behavior to different audiences and influence technical and product direction across teams.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

- M.S. or Ph.D. with a specialization in AI, machine learning, computer graphics, or a related field.
- Track record of conducting advanced research and successfully landing new technologies in large-scale, user-facing products
- Experience building and operating end-to-end generative AI systems, including but not limited to data, training, evaluation, context engineering, experimentation, observability, and quality-monitoring pipelines.
- Experience applying large language models, multimodal models, RAG, tool calling, multi-step agents, prompt engineering, or agent evaluation techniques to creative products.
- Hands-on experience building complex web-based creative tools, games, or interactive experiences using modern front-end technologies.
- Experience with computer graphics, 3D content creation, real-time rendering, game engines, or VFX pipelines.
- Experience building reusable AI platforms or research infrastructure, growing technical talent through mentorship, and raising engineering or research standards across a team.

ABOUT TIKTOK

TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok's global headquarters are in Los Angeles and Singapore, and we also have offices in New York City, London, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.

WHY JOIN US

Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy – a mission we work towards every day. We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.

TIKTOK ACCOMMODATION

TikTok is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://tinyurl.com/RA-request

JOB INFORMATION

【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually) The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $218400 - $480000 annually. Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units. Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure). The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates: Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:
1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
3. Exercising sound judgment.