Senior SWE/MLE - Bidder Quality - Pricing Algorithms at Moloco

Seattle, Washington, United States -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

06 Jan, 26

Salary

220000.0

Posted On

08 Oct, 25

Experience

5 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Machine Learning, Optimization, Auction Theory, Statistical Reasoning, System Design, Adtech, Real-Time Bidding, Programming, Data Structures, Cost-Aware Engineering, Distributed Systems, Business Metrics, Root-Cause Analysis, Collaboration, Performance Advertising

Industry

Advertising Services

Description

About Moloco: Moloco is a machine learning company empowering organizations of all sizes to grow and unlock the full value of their unique first-party data, elevating the traditional path to performance advertising. While the largest technology companies have proven the speed and scale of ad targeting using data, that same robust performance powered by machine learning has previously been unavailable beyond their platforms. That's where Moloco steps in. With Moloco's powerful combination of cutting-edge machine learning technologies, we play a unique and visible role in shaping the digital economy, all while enabling companies to stay independent and scale. An industry leader at the nexus of machine learning, performance marketing, and visionary product infrastructure, Moloco is advancing the advertising technology industry. We ranked in the top 10% of the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private companies for 2023. We were recognized as one of 46 leading Cloud Computing companies, receiving the Stratus Award for 2023. That same year, we also received Google’s Cloud DevOps Dreamers Award, given to companies implementing DevOps practices to drive organizational success and high performance. Lastly, Moloco is a 2024-certified Great Place to Work! Moloco is headquartered in Silicon Valley, with offices in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, London, Berlin, Seoul, Singapore, Beijing, Gurgaon, Bangalore, Tel Aviv, and Tokyo. Creating a diverse workforce and a culture of inclusion and belonging is core to our existence. To reach our goals, diversity of talent and thought is a critical component of how we operate as an organization. Our workforce is our superpower, and we know that fostering a culture of inclusion, authenticity, and belonging gives us the greatest opportunity to carry out our mission, to empower businesses of all sizes to grow through operational machine learning. Moloco is a truly rewarding place to work and in an exciting period of growth, which you could be a part of. Join us today and apply now! The impact you'll be contributing to Moloco: We seek an exceptional engineer with a strong computer science + mathematics foundation to join Moloco’s Bidder Quality team. In this role, you'll leverage the state-of-the-art technology stack that Moloco uses to drive our ML-powered performance ads business to determine bidding/pricing decisions. The Bidder Quality team owns the final bidding and pricing decisions that we are making for advertising campaigns. An example system component that the team builds is the bid price optimizer for first-price auction based open internet ad inventories. The team focuses on the operation and optimization of our software systems working closely with infrastructure engineering teams and machine learning teams. As a Senior Software Engineer on our Machine Learning Engineer (MLE) team, you will lead research projects and may lead small teams of MLEs as part of a broader group of cross functional collaborators working together to solve challenging problems in a complex multi-causal environment. Your work will contribute to driving performance improvements and cost reductions as you and your team debug and investigate production issues and stabilize our core system through deep end-to-end understanding. Here’s what you’ll be working on: If you've worked on bidding, bidder quality, ads quality, this role is for you. Design and implement real-time bidding and pricing algorithms for a high-scale advertising system (7M QPS), using optimization techniques, auction theory, and machine learning fundamentals. Leverage adtech experience to improve auction outcomes and bidding strategies, drawing from a strong understanding of advertising ecosystem dynamics (e.g., DSPs, SSPs, auctions). Develop scalable and cost-efficient ad serving systems, with strong system design principles to support performance advertising at scale. Conduct deep root-cause analyses of ad performance issues, using statistical reasoning and quantitative methods to drive unbiased insights and corrective actions. Identify opportunities to optimize the ad delivery pipeline, including reducing system or serving costs while maintaining performance, using efficient algorithms and data structures. Collaborate cross-functionally with product, infra, and account teams to anticipate the business impact of system changes and define future product roadmaps with a strong sense of product intuition and operational awareness. Stay informed on system-level and data-level changes, and work with collaborators to improve infrastructure and ML model performance in response. Basic Qualifications Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science with mathematical (ex, stats) coursework 6+ years of overall work experience (industry or postgraduate) in research related fields focused on optimization of market prices or ML systems Proven experience working in the adtech space—preferably with exposure to auction-based systems and real-time bidding environments. Strong mathematical or statistical background (e.g., optimization, probability, hypothesis testing). Solid understanding of business metrics, with an ability to translate technical changes into business outcomes. Strong system design skills, with experience in designing scalable, fault-tolerant distributed systems. Familiarity with cost-aware engineering practices—ability to optimize for compute, memory, and latency trade-offs. Hands-on coding ability in production-level codebases (e.g., C++, Java, Go, or Python). Working knowledge of machine learning principles, particularly in applied settings like ranking, predictions, or decision systems. Ph.D degree in Applied Mathematics, Operations Research, Management Science or related field a plus. Our Compensation And Benefits (for United States Residents Only) In accordance with various state laws, the range provided is a reasonable estimate of the base compensation for this role. The actual amount may be higher or lower based on non-discriminatory factors such as experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities. We also offer a competitive benefits package. Base Pay Range: $170,000—$220,000 USD Moloco Thrive: Benefits and Well-Being: We take care of you and create the conditions for you to do the best work of your career. Through a lens of inclusion, we offer innovative benefits that empower our employees to take care of themselves and their families so they can do the best work of their lives. Moloco Values: Lead with Humility: Everyone’s voice is respected, valued, and heard. With humility, we become more open and accessible to each other. We win, lose, and learn together. Accountability and feedback are essential to our success. Uncapped Growth Mindset: We see all situations as opportunities to learn, grow, and improve as individuals and as an organization. We seek diverse perspectives, encourage curiosity, and promote experimentation to push the boundaries of what’s possible. Create Real Value: We pursue the most impactful opportunities with rigor and integrity. We take intelligent risks and make disciplined trade-offs to maintain deep focus. We help our customers win by delivering durable value. Go Further Together: We’re one team working towards one mission and vision. We collaborate proactively and inclusively, involving the right people at the right time and in the right way. We strive to create a more equitable workplace. We won’t let each other fail. Additional Resources: Moloco Company Blog Moloco Leadership Moloco Newsroom Equal Opportunity: Moloco is an equal opportunity employer. As we highly value diversity in our current and future employees, we do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, sex and gender, gender expression and identity, sexual orientation, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, military and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Candidate Privacy Notice: Your privacy matters to us. By applying, you acknowledge that you’ve reviewed our Candidate Privacy Notice.

Responsibilities

As a Senior Software Engineer, you will design and implement real-time bidding and pricing algorithms for a high-scale advertising system. You will also conduct deep root-cause analyses of ad performance issues and collaborate cross-functionally to define future product roadmaps.