Principal Data Scientist - Riot Data Products, Technology Research

The Technology Research team performs applied research to accelerate the pace of building amazing player experiences at Riot Games. In this role, you will grow and lead a research team whose focus is to leverage ML/AI to simplify and amplify game development. To this end, your team will track the latest research in relevant areas, work closely with teams to prioritize the most promising research, build prototypes to highlight the value of the research, and in certain cases partner with game teams to create robust and efficient production versions of your prototypes.

Responsibilities:

Define and develop research topics within your areas of expertise and help create internal training materials.
Build and own roadmaps, risk management, and project indicators
Propose, implement, and evaluate new algorithms that expand our content creation capabilities (examples include: style transfer, physics based animation, deep learning for character animation).
Work closely with game engineers, artists, and designers to understand their needs and propose new predictive tools to help simplify game development.
Stay up to date on the latest academic advances & industry trends within your area of specialization.
Inform and manage stakeholders on game teams

Required Qualifications:

MS in Computer Science or equivalent with 6+ years research experience or BS in Computer Science or equivalent with 8+ years research experience
A background in applied or basic research (in industry or academia) + the ability to lead research through standard experimental methodologies
2+ years experience in deep learning or algorithmic foundations of optimization
Proficiency in C, C++, or Python
Contributions to public research (e.g. published papers and industry talks)
Experience in distributed computing systems design
Expertise with Tensorflow or Pytorch
Experience working in commercial game engines either for prototyping or full production (preferred Unreal Engine)
Experience working with 3D modeling and animation software

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about the experiences of players, this could be the role for you!

Our Perks:

We offer medical, dental, and vision plans that cover you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children. Life insurance, parental leave, plus short-term and long-term disability coverage are also available. Riot will support your retirement benefits with a company match, and double down on your donations of time and money to non-profit charitable organizations. Balance between work and personal life is encouraged with open paid time off, and a play fund so you can broaden and deepen your personal relationship with games.

Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the Summoner's Code and Community Code. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of thriving together and our ongoing work to build the most inclusive company in Gaming.

(Los Angeles only) Base salary range between $221,000 USD - $309,000 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance relating to an applicant's criminal history (LAMC 189.00).