Lead Software Engineer - USDS (Multiple Positions)

About TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC

TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is dedicated to the safety and security of millions of Americans who create, discover, and connect with what they love on the apps we operate. The Joint Venture has been established in compliance with the Executive Order signed by President Trump on September 25, 2025. Our foundation is a comprehensive data privacy and cybersecurity program. We operate under defined safeguards to protect national security and secure U.S. user data, apps and the algorithm. We safeguard the U.S. content ecosystem, holding decision-making authority for trust and safety policies and moderation. USDS Joint Venture helps ensure Americans can continue to express their creativity, discover new hobbies and interests, and build thriving communities and businesses on a global scale.

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.

About the Team

Our team plays a crucial role in ensuring the company’s success. We seek people who are willing to learn and put in the effort to solve problems. Our challenges are not your regular day-to-day problems - you’ll be part of a team that’s developing new solutions to new challenges. It’s working fast, at scale, and we’re making a difference. We are looking for talents to join us on this exciting journey!

Responsibilities

Design, architect, develop, and implement large-scale software platforms, systems, and services.

Define and lead critical architectural decisions for a software development team, providing sound technical direction and communicating effectively.

Define system functionality and develop software verification plans and quality assurance procedures.

Lead the full software development life cycle from preliminary system analysis to tests and deployment.

Build high-quality, innovative, and fully performing software that complies with coding standards and technical design.

Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver work in rapid product development.

Handle complex module R&D.

Mentor senior and mid-level software engineers.

Qualifications

Must have a Master's degree or foreign equivalent degree in Computer Science, Engineering (any), Information Systems, Data Analytics, Mathematics, Physics, or a related field, and 4 years of related work experience; OR a Bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent degree in Computer Science, Engineering (any), Information Systems, Data Analytics, Mathematics, Physics, or a related field, and 6 years of related work experience, out of which 5 years must be post-bachelor's, progressive related work experience.

Of the required experience, must have 4 years of experience in each of the following:

Managing the full release lifecycle, including code development, build, testing, validation, and deployment;

Designing and implementing large-scale, distributed online software services using Java, Go, JavaScript, Ruby, or Python;

Maintaining and debugging software services, and using Unix or Linux operating system;

Designing and implementing software service architecture to support high throughput and fault tolerant services; and

Designing and managing databases to support online services using MySQL or Redis.

Employer: TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC

Type: Full time, 40 hours/week

Location: San Jose, CA

Salary Range: $221443 - $438000 per year

To Apply, click the apply button below. Contact lpresumes@tiktokusds.com if you have difficulty submitting resume through the website.

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.

USDS 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/USDS-RA

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