Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Tidal Personalization AI

TIDAL was founded for artists by artists as the next innovative streaming platform to bring value back to the music industry. We empower artists with the products, resources, services, and content required to take control of their careers and connect more deeply with fans. Available in over 60+ countries, TIDAL continues to help artists break down economic barriers to continue creating what's next in culture. TIDAL is part of Block, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), a global technology company with a focus on financial services.
The Role
The Personalization AI team uses AI/ML to directly support Tidal's mission to be the first consideration for an artist when they want to share their music. On the listener side, we algorithmically surface music artists have shared by creating playlists, making recommendations, and supporting advanced search. We collaborate closely with Design, Business and engineering teams across TIDAL and the rest of Block. We use a wide range of models including simple heuristics, embeddings, deep learning and large-language models.
You Will

• Lead strategic initiatives in Personalization & AI Engineering, driving the vision, architecture, and execution
• Develop new AI/ML systems that power Tidal's homepage including semantic search, recommendations, UX and playlists
• Build production systems that personalize the listener's experience
• Be a technical leader and establish quality practices that stick, make broader design decisions and set an example for others to follow
• Collaborate with a cross functional team of designers, business partners, and software engineers to build new technologies and features
• Design experiments, test them on production users, analyze and repeat

You Have

• 12+ years building and operating quality software
• 5+ years of experience with recommender systems, ranking systems, or similar
• Led the development of complex models trained on large datasets powering customer facing features
• Strong software engineering skills
• Strong communication skills and customer empathy
• Experience with PyTorch, PySpark, Databricks and AWS is a plus

We're working to build a more inclusive economy where our customers have equal access to opportunity, and we strive to live by these same values in building our workplace. Block is an equal opportunity employer evaluating all employees and job applicants without regard to identity or any legally protected class. We will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and "fair chance" ordinances. We believe in being fair, and are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including providing reasonable accommodations to disabled applicants throughout the recruitment process. We encourage applicants to share any needed accommodations with their recruiter, who will treat these requests as confidentially as possible. Want to learn more about what we're doing to build a workplace that is fair and square? Check out our I+D page .
While there is no specific deadline to apply for this role, U.S. roles are typically open for an average of 55 days before being filled by a successful candidate. Please refer to the date listed at the top of this job page for when this role was first posted.
Block takes a market-based approach to pay, and pay may vary depending on your location. U.S. locations are categorized into one of four zones based on a cost of labor index for that geographic area. The successful candidate's starting pay will be determined based on job-related skills, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions. These ranges may be modified in the future.
To find a location's zone designation, please refer to this resource . If a location of interest is not listed, please speak with a recruiter for additional information.
Zone A:
$228,700 - $343,100 USD
Zone B:
$217,300 - $325,900 USD
Zone C:
$205,900 - $308,900 USD
Zone D:
$194,500 - $291,700 USD
Use of AI in Our Hiring Process
We may use automated AI tools to evaluate job applications for efficiency and consistency. These tools comply with local regulations, including bias audits, and we handle all personal data in accordance with state and local privacy laws.
Contact us at [email protected] with hiring practice or data usage questions.
Every benefit we offer is designed with one goal: empowering you to do the best work of your career while building the life you want. Remote work, medical insurance, flexible time off, retirement savings plans, and modern family planning are just some of our offering. Check out our other benefits at Block.
Block, Inc. (NYSE: XYZ) builds technology to increase access to the global economy. Each of our brands unlocks different aspects of the economy for more people. Square makes commerce and financial services accessible to sellers. Cash App is the easy way to spend, send, and store money. Afterpay is transforming the way customers manage their spending over time. TIDAL is a music platform that empowers artists to thrive as entrepreneurs. Bitkey is a simple self-custody wallet built for bitcoin. Proto is a suite of bitcoin mining products and services. Together, we're helping build a financial system that is open to everyone.