Staff Data Scientist - Anti-Cheat

Riot Data Scientists combine their wide technical expertise across data processing, automation, machine learning ("ML"), artificial intelligence ("AI"), and experimental design to inform decisions and develop data-powered products.

As a Staff Data Scientist on the the Anti-Cheat team, you will be dedicated to maintaining the integrity of our gaming environment by detecting and mitigating cheating activities. You will play a crucial role in developing models, monitoring their performance, and implementing and maintaining pipelines that automate the detection and enforcement of actions against cheaters in our games. You will collaborate on a daily basis with the other data engineers and scientists on the team, while also working closely with Anti-Cheat leadership on product and execution strategy.

Responsibilities:

• Independently analyze and develop prototypes for emerging challenges in the anti-cheat space. Assess these prototypes to determine their feasibility and potential for further development.
• Design the necessary feature sets to address anti-cheat challenges, processing data into scalable formats for model use. If additional telemetry data is required, communicate detailed requirements to game teams or other parts of the Anti-Cheat team.
• Develop mission-critical machine learning and artificial intelligence systems from scratch, including gathering requirements and designing scalable, production-ready architecture that significantly impacts the team and product.
• Mentor junior staff by sharing your reasoning behind design decisions and result interpretations. Act as a subject matter expert, providing technical leadership across multiple teams and projects, while managing the end-to-end execution of complex, multi-month initiatives.
• Engage with stakeholders outside the team to secure buy-in for projects and effectively communicate the impact and significance of the team’s results.
• Collaborate with the data engineering team to troubleshoot and optimize ETL pipelines, ensuring efficient data flow and processing.
• Reduce ambiguity in complex problem spaces by leading technical discovery and prototyping efforts that have a strategic impact on the team.

Required Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Machine Learning, AI, Statistics, Math, or related Computer Science/Quantitative field with 3+ years of industry experience (including Postdoc), or equivalent experience (i.e., M.S. with 4-6+ years of relevant experience, or B.S. with 6-8+ years of relevant experience)
• Proficient in large-scale data manipulation across various data types.
• Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot and optimize complex ETL pipelines.
• Deep understanding of traditional machine learning models, with familiarity in deep learning technologies and their applications.
• Familiarity with relational databases (e.g., MySQL, Postgres), document stores (e.g., ElasticSearch), and distributed storage systems (e.g., HDFS, S3, Google Cloud Storage).

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience working in the cybersecurity or anti-cheat problem space.
• Knowledge of container technologies (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes) and infrastructure as code tools (e.g., Terraform, Ansible).
• Understanding of high-performance competitive multiplayer games and the challenges associated with them.

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!

Our Perks:

Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the Summoner's Code and Community Code. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of thriving together and our ongoing work to build the most inclusive company in Gaming.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.

Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:

• Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
• Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
• Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
• Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.