Staff Applied Scientist , Inventory & Marketplace Quality

The Trade Desk is a global technology company and the world’s leading

independent platform for digital advertising, with nearly 4,000 employees across

more than 30 offices. Our technology helps advertisers reach the right audiences

across the open internet — from streaming TV and podcasts to mobile apps, news,

and more.

Advertising powers the content people love. By making it more transparent,

effective, and responsible, we help support trusted journalism, quality

entertainment, and creators worldwide. The world’s brands and agencies rely on

us to reach their customers and grow their businesses responsibly.

The scale of our platform brings unique technical challenges — from processing

massive datasets in real time to building systems that operate reliably on a

global scale. When you work here, your impact is worldwide. We welcome diverse

perspectives, encourage curiosity, and build teams that learn from one another.

If you’re driven to solve meaningful challenges, we’d love to meet you.

We are looking for a Lead Staff Data Scientist to join the Marketplace Quality

Engineering (MQE) team. MQE is a cross-functional team responsible for the

integrity, performance, and trustworthiness of The Trade Desk’s inventory

marketplace. We build systems that detect and prevent fraud, measure and improve

inventory quality, and optimize marketplace dynamics to deliver better outcomes

for advertisers, publishers, and consumers.

In this role, you will provide technical and strategic leadership within MQE

by defining data science roadmap and execution plans,

owning end-to-end development of advanced modeling, analytical, and measurement

systems, and partnering closely with engineering, product, and business leaders

to translate complex requirements into trusted, scalable solutions.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Technical Ownership

* Own the data science vision and roadmap for MQE initiatives,

aligning technical direction with strategic goals and industry trends.

* Design, build, and productionize statistical and machine learning models to

detect fraud, invalid traffic, and low-quality inventory in adversarial,

large-scale environments.

* Define and maintain metrics, experimentation procedures, and monitoring

systems to ensure long-term performance.

* Develop analytical and explainability frameworks that provide clear

visibility into how quality initiatives impact inventory supply, advertiser

spend, and marketplace dynamics.

Cross-Functional Impact

* Collaborate with product and business stakeholders to translate analytical

insights into clear, defensible decisions and marketplace enforcement

strategies.

* Partner closely with engineering to deploy scalable, performant models.

* Anticipate emerging marketplace risks and proactively develop data-driven

solutions to protect marketplace integrity.

Leadership & Mentorship

* Act as a staff-level technical leader, setting standards for analytical

rigor, model evaluation, and scientific best practices across MQE.

* Mentor and develop data scientists through design reviews, technical

guidance, and career coaching.

* Influence technical direction across teams by driving alignment, knowledge

sharing, and a culture of high-quality decision-making.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

* Advanced degree (MS or PhD) in a quantitative field such as Statistics,

Computer Science, Economics, Applied Math, Operations Research, or similar.

* 7+ years of experience working in a DS role that involves bringing products

from ideation to production.

* Deep expertise in statistical modeling, machine learning, and large-scale

data analysis.

* Strong understanding of experimentation, causal inference, and metric design

in complex systems.

* Familiarity with large-scale data and ML tooling (e.g. Spark, distributed

training, real-time inference systems).

* Proven ability to lead ambiguous, high-impact projects end-to-end as a senior

individual contributor.

* Excellent communication skills and the ability to influence

across organizational boundaries.

* Experience in programmatic advertising and/or real-time auctions is a plus.

* Track record of mentoring senior data scientists and shaping team-level

technical direction is a plus.

In accordance with various US state laws, the range provided is the Trade Desk's

reasonable estimate of the base compensation for this role. The actual amount

may differ based on non-discriminatory factors such as experience, knowledge,

skills, and location. All employees may be eligible to become The Trade Desk

shareholders through eligibility for stock-based compensation grants, which are

awarded to employees based on company and individual performance. The Trade Desk

also offers other compensation depending on the role such as variable

compensation-based incentives and commissions. Plus, expected benefits for this

role include comprehensive healthcare (medical, dental, and vision) with

premiums paid in full for employees and dependents, retirement benefits such as

a 401k plan and company match, short and long-term disability coverage, basic

life insurance, well-being benefits, reimbursement for certain tuition expenses,

parental leave, sick time of 1 hour per 30 hours worked, vacation time for

full-time employees up to 120 hours thru the first year and 160 hours

thereafter, and around 13 paid holidays per year. Employees can also purchase

The Trade Desk stock at a discount through The Trade Desk’s Employee Stock

Purchase Plan.

The Trade Desk also offers a competitive benefits package. Click here

[https://careers.thetradedesk.com/us/en] to learn more.

Note: Interns are not eligible for variable incentive awards such as stock-based

compensation, retirement plan, vacation, tuition reimbursement or parental leave

At the Trade Desk, Base Salary is one part of our competitive total compensation

and benefits package and is determined using a salary range. The base salary

range for this role is

$137,300—$251,800 USD

As an Equal Opportunity Employer, The Trade Desk is committed to creating an

inclusive hiring experience where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Please reach out to us at accommodations@ thetradedesk. com

[[email protected]] to request an accommodation or discuss any

accessibility needs you may require to access our Company Website or navigate

any part of the hiring process.

When you contact us, please include your preferred contact details and specify

the nature of your accommodation request or questions. Any information you share

will be handled confidentially and will not impact our hiring decisions.