Principal ML Engineer

LILT is the leading AI solution for enterprise translations. Our stack made up of our Contextual AI Engine, Connector APIs, and Human Adaptive Feedback enables global organizations to adopt a true AI translation strategy, focusing on business outcomes instead of outputs. With LILT, innovative, category-defining organizations like Intel, ASICS, WalkMe, and Canva are using AI technology to deliver multilingual, digital customer experiences at scale.

While our core AI technology might share similarities with ChatGPT and Google Translate, it's what we do with it that makes LILT truly revolutionary. Our patented Contextual AI Engine goes beyond basic translations, understanding the nuance of our customer's content and target audience to deliver hyper-accurate, business-focused results. Our connector-first approach seamlessly integrates with our customer's existing workflows, and our human-adapted feedback loop ensures continuous improvement, making LILT a constantly evolving AI partner for your global ambitions.

Get the best of both worlds at LILT! Dive into dynamic in-office energy 2 days a week, sparking creativity and forging bonds with your awesome team. Then, seamlessly shift gears and crush your to-do list from the comfort of your home base for the rest of the week. It's the perfect harmony of productivity and personal freedom. Want a peek inside? Visit our Careers page!

Authorization to work in the U.S. / Germany is a precondition of employment.

The Engineering Team at Lilt

Lilt is a high-performance, large-scale language translation system. We invest in and prioritize workflow (i.e., usability and interface design) and backend AI systems. Since the translation workforce is distributed worldwide, there are interesting cloud engineering problems to solve. We have a strong preference for building our own backend technology, so you’ll be implementing and working with the latest natural language processing (NLP) techniques and ideas.

What you’ll do

In tight collaboration with Lilt’s research team, the infrastructure team, and the wider Engineering organization you will be in charge of productizing new AI technologies, improving and maintaining our Machine Learning Operations infrastructure, and optimizing Large Language Model deployments. As Principal Engineer you will also have team lead responsibilities and play a big part in roadmap definition and execution.

This position is based out of our Berlin office, or Indianapolis, IN offices and will be expected to work in the office in a hybrid capacity. Additional locations include the Washington D.C., New York City, and Boston metropolitan areas where you will start as fully remote and then transition to hybrid once offices are opened in those locations you will be expected to work in the office in a hybrid capacity.

Key Responsibilities:

• Architect, design, and enhance our machine learning platform capabilities and infrastructure, including Large Language Model  and vector databases to serve our enterprise customers.

• Work closely with applied research  and engineering leaders, product managers and other business stakeholders to bring our state-of-the-art multilingual solutions to customers and to discover and identify new opportunities.

• Drive the operationalization of solutions deployed in production with strong focus on operational excellence, and help the team grow and cultivate best practices in software development and MLOps.

• Design and implement architecture to efficiently productize new AI technologies, guaranteeing high availability and reliability on both SaaS and air-gapped environments..

• Identify and facilitate delivery of multi-team projects on clear timelines.

• Work with the team to identify areas of strategic technical debt and arrive at cost/benefit analyses for their elimination. 

• Create and maintain a motivating and collaborative work environment.

Skills and Experience:

• Ph.D., Masters  or equivalent  in Computer Science, Statistics, or Computational Math (or equivalent industry experience in Computer Science or a related technical discipline). 

• 10+ years of engineering experience

• 4+ years experience working on a Machine Learning product.

• Experience with containerized CI/CD workflows

• Experience with production deployment and optimization of large neural networks on accelerator hardware (GPUs)

• Experience with distributed LLM training infrastructures

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

• Passion to devise solutions that require a focus on systems thinking.

• Demonstrated ability to gather, organize, and synthesize significant and diverse information.

• Ability to manage and execute projects through cross-functional collaboration and organizational influence.

Our Story

Our founders, Spence and John met at Google working on Google Translate.  As researchers at Stanford and Berkeley, they both worked on language technology to make information accessible to everyone. They were amazed to learn that Google Translate wasn’t used for enterprise products and services inside the company and left to start a new company to address this need – Lilt. 

At its core, Lilt has always been a machine learning company since its incorporation on March 6, 2015. At the time, machine translation didn’t meet the quality standard for enterprise translations, so Lilt assembled a cutting-edge research team tasked with closing that gap. While meeting customer demand for translation services, Lilt has prioritized investments in Large Language Models, believing that this foundation was imperative to the future of enterprise translation.

Benefits: 

• Compensation: Competitive salary, meaningful equity, and time off plus company holidays. 

• Monthly lifestyle benefit stipend via the Fringe platform to allow employees to customize benefits to their lifestyle.

US Benefits:

• Compensation: At market salary meaningful equity, 401(k) matching, and flexible time off plus company holidays

• Medical Benefits: Employees receive coverage of medical, dental, and vision insurance, plus FSA/DFSA, HSA, and Commuter benefits. In addition, LILT pays for basic life insurance, short-term disability, and long-term disability

• Paid parental leave is provided after 6 months.

• Monthly lifestyle benefit stipend via the Fringe platform to allow employees to customize benefits to their lifestyle

  
  

Lilt is an equal opportunity employer. We extend equal opportunity to all individuals without regard to an individual’s race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic characteristics, veteran or marital status, pregnancy, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state or federal laws. We are committed to the principles of fair employment and the elimination of all discriminatory practices.