Full-Time

Senior ML Research Engineer

AI & Generative Recommendation, m/f/d

Posted on 5/7/2026

applike group

applike group

201-500 employees

Builds independent app-focused companies for publishers

No salary listed

Berlin, Germany

Hybrid

Hybrid setup with 3 core office days in Berlin.

Category
AI & Machine Learning (2)
,
Required Skills
Pytorch
Machine Learning
Requirements
  • PhD in Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, or Physics (or MSc with extensive industry research) and a track record of publications in top-tier venues (SIGIR, KDD, NeurIPS, ICLR, etc.)
  • 4+ years of professional experience building large-scale recommenders in high-throughput industries (AdTech, E-commerce, or Social)
  • Deep proficiency in PyTorch with experience in high-concurrency optimization, model quantization, and distillation
  • Independent driver who does not need a roadmap and can create one, solving unsolved problems with a direct impact on business return on investment
Responsibilities
  • Architect Multi-Stage Recommendation Pipelines: lead the design and implementation of AI-Native Recommendation Pipelines, encompassing Generative Retrieval, Deep Ranking, and Re-ranking, serving millions of requests.
  • Bridge Theory to Production: act as the team’s primary Paper2Code Ninja, distilling state-of-the-art research (NeurIPS, KDD, RecSys) into robust, production-ready code optimized for sub-millisecond latency.
  • Evolve Content Understanding: direct the research on information-rich embeddings, utilizing unsupervised and generative approaches to create a unified representation of users and ads.
  • Scale Innovative Tech: own the transfer of innovative technologies into high-concurrency environments, ensuring large-scale generative models thrive under extreme production constraints.
  • Act as a Team Multiplier: lead architectural debates, mentor junior scientists, and foster a collaborative environment where constructive feedback pushes the team to excel

AppLike Group builds and manages a portfolio of independent companies that provide specialized tools for mobile app publishers, including advertising networks, mobile games, and growth automation platforms. These products work by leveraging shared technology and data across the group to help developers acquire users, monetize apps through rewarded gameplay, and automate marketing strategies. Unlike traditional software firms, AppLike Group operates as a "company builder," launching autonomous businesses like adjoe and Sunday that focus on specific niches while benefiting from a central pool of knowledge. The company's goal is to provide a complete ecosystem of solutions that help app publishers scale their businesses and increase revenue in the global app market.

Company Size

201-500

Company Stage

Late Stage VC

Total Funding

$110M

Headquarters

Hamburg, Germany

Founded

2015

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • justDice's rewarded gaming aligns with 2025 shift toward engagement-based monetization over traditional ads.
  • adjoe's premium video ad formats capture higher CPM rates in fragmented global mobile ad market.
  • justtrack automates user acquisition, addressing industry shift toward programmatic growth optimization for publishers.

What critics are saying

  • Google Privacy Sandbox blocks third-party SDK trackers, crippling justtrack's automation and slashing retention.
  • Unity and IronSource-Microsoft consolidation erode adjoe's market share through integrated, superior ad solutions.
  • EU DMA fines target Sunday's addictive mechanics with €50M penalties, forcing monetization redesigns.

What makes applike group unique

  • Vertically integrated company builder covering full mobile app value chain from monetization to growth.
  • justDice leads rewarded gaming with 50M+ users, capturing engagement-based monetization trend.
  • Shared infrastructure across adjoe, justDice, Sunday, justtrack enables rapid scaling and operational efficiency.

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Benefits

Hybrid Work Options

Flexible Work Hours

Mental Health Support

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Employee Assistance Program

Growth & Insights

Headcount

6 month growth

0%

1 year growth

2%

2 year growth

-1%