Software Engineer Project Intern (Model Infrastructure) - 2026 Start (BS/MS)

Responsibilities

About the Team The TikTok Model Infrastructure team is the core engine powering the world's most engaged "For You" feed. We focus on the engineering efficiency and architectural evolution of recommendation models at an unprecedented scale. As we lead the industry's shift toward LLM2Rec and Large Recommendation Models (LRM), our mission is to build ultra-high-performance infrastructure that bridges the gap between massive data scale and extreme algorithmic complexity.

We tackle the industry's most demanding "frontier" challenges: managing Petabyte-scale distributed embedding states, optimizing thousand-node GPU clusters, and perfecting real-time Sparse/Dense streaming. Our work ensures that models with hundreds of billions of dense parameters-on par with the world's largest LLMs-can operate with millisecond-level latency. We are seeking Software Engineering Interns to join the Model Infra team to redefine the performance boundaries of recommendation systems.

In this role, you will focus on the efficiency of the entire model lifecycle. You will work on the convergence of generative AI and recommendation architecture, optimizing everything from the raw throughput of multi-billion parameter dense blocks to the efficient retrieval of sparse features across massive distributed memory fabrics. As a project intern, you will have the opportunity to engage in impactful short-term projects that provide you with a glimpse of professional real-world experience.

You will gain practical skills through on-the-job learning in a fast-paced work environment and develop a deeper understanding of your career interests. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis - we encourage you to apply early.

Responsibilities - Engineering Efficiency at Scale: Drive the optimization of training and inference pipelines to maximize hardware utilization (MFU/HFU) for models featuring hundreds of billions of dense parameters.

  • LLM2Rec Infrastructure: Architect specializ
Back to blog

Common Interview Questions And Answers

1. HOW DO YOU PLAN YOUR DAY?

This is what this question poses: When do you focus and start working seriously? What are the hours you work optimally? Are you a night owl? A morning bird? Remote teams can be made up of people working on different shifts and around the world, so you won't necessarily be stuck in the 9-5 schedule if it's not for you...

2. HOW DO YOU USE THE DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION TOOLS IN DIFFERENT SITUATIONS?

When you're working on a remote team, there's no way to chat in the hallway between meetings or catch up on the latest project during an office carpool. Therefore, virtual communication will be absolutely essential to get your work done...

3. WHAT IS "WORKING REMOTE" REALLY FOR YOU?

Many people want to work remotely because of the flexibility it allows. You can work anywhere and at any time of the day...

4. WHAT DO YOU NEED IN YOUR PHYSICAL WORKSPACE TO SUCCEED IN YOUR WORK?

With this question, companies are looking to see what equipment they may need to provide you with and to verify how aware you are of what remote working could mean for you physically and logistically...

5. HOW DO YOU PROCESS INFORMATION?

Several years ago, I was working in a team to plan a big event. My supervisor made us all work as a team before the big day. One of our activities has been to find out how each of us processes information...

6. HOW DO YOU MANAGE THE CALENDAR AND THE PROGRAM? WHICH APPLICATIONS / SYSTEM DO YOU USE?

Or you may receive even more specific questions, such as: What's on your calendar? Do you plan blocks of time to do certain types of work? Do you have an open calendar that everyone can see?...

7. HOW DO YOU ORGANIZE FILES, LINKS, AND TABS ON YOUR COMPUTER?

Just like your schedule, how you track files and other information is very important. After all, everything is digital!...

8. HOW TO PRIORITIZE WORK?

The day I watched Marie Forleo's film separating the important from the urgent, my life changed. Not all remote jobs start fast, but most of them are...

9. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A MEETING AND PREPARE A MEETING? WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING DURING THE MEETING?

Just as communication is essential when working remotely, so is organization. Because you won't have those opportunities in the elevator or a casual conversation in the lunchroom, you should take advantage of the little time you have in a video or phone conference...

10. HOW DO YOU USE TECHNOLOGY ON A DAILY BASIS, IN YOUR WORK AND FOR YOUR PLEASURE?

This is a great question because it shows your comfort level with technology, which is very important for a remote worker because you will be working with technology over time...