Machine Learning Engineer specializing in Search Recommendations

Machine Learning Engineer specializing in Search Recommendations

Shopify

Every day, millions of people search for products across Shopify's ecosystem. That's not just queries—that's dreams, businesses, and livelihoods riding on whether someone finds the perfect vintage jacket or the exact drill bit they need. As a Machine Learning Engineer specializing in Search Recommendations, you'll be the one making that magic happen. With a search index unifying over a billion products, you're tackling one of the hardest search problems at unprecedented scale. We're building cutting-edge product search from the ground up using the latest LLM advances and vector matching technologies to create search experiences that truly understand what people are looking for.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement AI-powered features to enhance search recommendations and personalization

• Collaborate with data scientists and engineers to productionize data products through rigorous experimentation and metrics analysis

• Build and maintain robust, scalable data pipelines for search and recommendation systems

• Develop comprehensive tools for evaluation and relevance engineering, following high-quality software engineering practices

• Mentor engineers and data scientists while fostering a culture of innovation and technical excellence

Qualifications

• Expertise in relevance engineering and recommendation systems, with hands-on experience in Elasticsearch, Solr, or vector databases

• Strong proficiency in Python with solid object-oriented programming skills

• Proven ability to write optimized, low-latency code for high-performance systems

• Experience deploying machine learning, NLP, or generative AI products at scale (strong plus)

• Familiarity with statistical methods and exposure to Ruby, Rails, or Rust (advantageous)

• Track record of shipping ML solutions that real users depend on

• Ready to make search more magical? Join the team that's making commerce better for everyone.

• At Shopify, we pride ourselves on moving quickly—not just in shipping, but in our hiring process as well.

• This role may require on-call work

• About the discipline

• Engineering. It’s our DNA.

• Engineering isn't a department at Shopify. It's our DNA. The engineers who thrive here care about the code, the system, and the merchants relying on both. They want hard problems and uncomfortable growth. They find solutions without waiting for permission. They ship weekly. They want commerce to work better for everyone. So does our founder, Tobi, who still codes and still shapes where this thing is going.

• They're open source nerds. They pair program because two brains write better code than one. New tools, new models, new approaches. They experiment constantly. Most of what's standard here started as someone hacking on something.

• They use AI like a keyboard, reflexively and everywhere, to clear the mundane and make room for thinking. And they work in the open. The fastest way to learn here is to watch someone better than you do the work. If that sounds like you, come build with us.

• Infrastructure engineering

• Infrastructure Engineers at Shopify build and maintain the systems that handle millions of requests per second and billions of dollars in transactions. At that scale, performance gains matter and weak assumptions surface quickly. Your systems power the experience for millions of entrepreneurs and buyers every minute of every day, including peak events like Black Friday.

• Engineers at Shopify spend the majority of their time actually writing code to build and improve infrastructure. You’ll solve problems that don’t exist anywhere else, with challenges that push what’s possible. If that lights you up, come build with us.

• Growth and rewards

• Mastery-matched compensation.

• ~Mastery

• At Shopify, getting better at your craft and increasing your impact is how you grow. Twice a year, we assess both in our ~Mastery cycle, Shopify’s performance review. Achieving higher ~Mastery is a promotion, and when you earn a promotion your total rewards grow with it. Crafter and manager are equal paths, so you can pursue excellence in the craft you’re best at.

• Total Rewards

• With Flex Comp, your Rewards Wallet gives you agency over your compensation mix. Adjust your mix of cash, restricted share units, and stock options (including programs like Long-Term Equity)* to where it makes sense for you, and mix it up anytime as life and priorities change. Buying a house? Want more skin in the game? Just experimenting? It’s your call.

• Flex Comp program offerings vary based on location, role, and employment type. Full details are set out in our Terms & Conditions and related plan documents.

• Built for real life

• Room for the rest of your life.

• Flexible work, remote by design

• A flexible vacation policy means most Shopifolk can take the vacation days they feel they need to recharge.

• If a change of everyday scenery is more your jam, Destination 90 means you can work from (almost) anywhere in the world for 90 days of the year.

• Your setup

• Your battlestation is your home base. Request the desk, chair, and AV gear you need to get shit done.

Benefits

• You need ‘em, we’ve got ‘em. Our health and welfare benefits may include health, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance depending on your country. If you’re in a country without a package, you'll receive a monthly allowance. We also offer mental health support for you and your dependents, including immediate and confidential services like counseling and coaching sessions.

• Family support

• We offer fertility benefits globally, along with paid parental leave to welcome a new family member.