Staff Data Scientist at PayPal in San Jose, CA

Staff Data Scientist Location: San Jose, California, United States of America The Company PayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. We operate a global, two-sided network at scale that connects hundreds of millions of merchants and consumers. We help merchants and consumers connect, transact, and complete payments, whether they are online or in person. PayPal is more than a connection to third-party payment networks. We provide proprietary payment solutions accepted by merchants that enable the completion of payments on our platform on behalf of our customers. We offer our customers the flexibility to use their accounts to purchase and receive payments for goods and services, as well as the ability to transfer and withdraw funds. We enable consumers to exchange funds more safely with merchants using a variety of funding sources, which may include a bank account, a PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products, a credit card, a debit card, certain cryptocurrencies, or other stored value products such as gift cards, and eligible credit card rewards.  Our PayPal, Venmo, and Xoom products also make it safer and simpler for friends and family to transfer funds to each other. We offer merchants an end-to-end payments solution that provides authorization and settlement capabilities, as well as instant access to funds and payouts. We also help merchants connect with their customers, process exchanges and returns, and manage risk. We enable consumers to engage in cross-border shopping and merchants to extend their global reach while reducing the complexity and friction involved in enabling cross-border trade. Our beliefs are the foundation for how we conduct business every day.  We live each day guided by our core values of Inclusion, Innovation, Collaboration, and Wellness. Together, our values ensure that we work together as one global team with our customers at the center of everything we do – and they push us to ensure we take care of ourselves, each other, and our communities. Job Summary: We are seeking a Staff Data Scientist to lead the design, development, and deployment of advanced AI systems, including Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), semantic knowledge bases, and MCP (Model Context Protocol) server ecosystems. This role requires deep technical expertise combined with architectural leadership, ownership of end-to-end AI systems, and the ability to drive best practices across teams. You will play a critical role in shaping our AI strategy and delivering scalable, production-grade intelligent systems. Job Description: Essential Responsibilities: Lead and manage data science projects, ensuring timely delivery and alignment with business goals. Develop and maintain data models, algorithms, and reporting systems to support data analysis and decision-making. Analyze complex datasets to identify trends, patterns, and insights that drive strategic initiatives. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand data needs and provide actionable insights. Ensure data quality and integrity through regular audits and validation processes. Mentor and guide junior data scientists, fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement. Minimum Qualifications: 5+ years relevant experience and a Bachelor’s degree OR Any equivalent combination of education and experience. Additional Responsibilities & Preferred Qualifications: Responsibilities: Lead the design and architecture of end-to-end AI systems, including:RAG pipeline, Semantic knowledge bases, Vector search and retrieval systems Define and implement best practices for LLM-based systems, including prompting, evaluation, and system design Architect, build, and scale MCP servers and integrate them into broader AI and product ecosystems Drive development of LLMOps frameworks, including evaluation, monitoring, and continuous improvement of AI systems Design and optimize retrieval pipelines, including embeddings, indexing, ranking, and hybrid search Mentor and guide junior data scientists and engineers on AI system design and statistical rigor Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, product, and leadership to translate business problems into scalable AI solutions Establish metrics, experimentation frameworks, and statistical validation approaches for AI system performance Required Skills & Qualifications: Experience leading large-scale AI initiatives or platforms Familiarity with fine-tuning techniques (LoRA, PEFT) and model customization Experience with multi-agent systems and orchestration frameworks Background in search, recommendation systems, or knowledge graphs Experience in enterprise or regulated environments (e.g., fintech) Deep expertise in: RAG architectures and retrieval systems, Semantic search and knowledge systems, Vector databases (Pinecone, Weaviate, FAISS, Chroma) Strong experience with LLMs (OpenAI, Anthropic, open-source models) Proven experience designing and scaling MCP servers or similar AI system infrastructure Experience with agent frameworks and tool/skill orchestration Strong experience launching production AI Agents systems, including: Experiment tracking and evaluation (LangSmith, Weights & Biases, MLflow) Observability and monitoring (latency, token usage, system reliability) Evaluation frameworks for RAG (faithfulness, hallucination detection, groundedness) Embeddings & Retrieval Optimization Deep understanding of embedding models and semantic similarity Expertise in improving retrieval quality via: Hybrid search (vector + keyword/BM25) Reranking models (Cohere Rerank, Hugging Face cross-encoders) Advanced chunking, indexing, and document processing strategies Proven ability to optimize end-to-end RAG system performance Prompting & LLM Engineering Advanced expertise in: Prompt engineering and optimization Context design and grounding techniques Systematic evaluation and iteration of LLM outputs Data Science & Statistical Leadership Strong foundation in: Probability and statistics Hypothesis testing and experimentation Causal inference and experimental design Experience defining metrics and evaluation frameworks for complex AI systems Programming & System Design Strong proficiency in Python Experience with: ML/AI frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow, Hugging Face) Data processing (Pandas, NumPy, Spark) Backend/API development (FastAPI or similar) Solid understanding of distributed systems and scalable architecture What Success Looks Like Architect and deliver scalable, production-grade AI systems Establish best practices for RAG, LLMOps, and retrieval optimization Drive measurable improvements in system accuracy, latency, and reliability Influence technical direction and elevate AI capabilities across the organization Subsidiary: PayPal Travel Percent: 0 - The base pay for this role will depend on where you work and the relevant experience and expertise you bring. The expected range of pay for this role by location is: Primary Location | Pay Range: San Jose, California | ($176,500.00 - $262,350.00 Annually) Additional Location(s) | Pay Range: No other locations are assigned to this requisition currently. Additional compensation for this role may include an annual performance bonus, equity, or other incentive compensation, as applicable. PayPal does not charge candidates any fees for courses, applications, resume reviews, interviews, background checks, or onboarding. When making an application directly, we will never ask you to share passwords, one-time passcodes (OTP), or verification codes.  Any such request is a red flag and likely part of a scam. All communication regarding your application will come from official PayPal email domains. If you suspect fraudulent activity, please report it immediately.  To learn more about how to identify and avoid recruitment fraud please visit https://careers.pypl.com/contact-us. For the majority of employees, PayPal's balanced hybrid work model offers 3 days in the office for effective in-person collaboration and 2 days at your choice of either the PayPal office or your home workspace, ensuring that you equally have the benefits and conveniences of both locations. Our Benefits: At PayPal, we’re committed to building an equitable and inclusive global economy. And we can’t do this without our most important asset-you. That’s why we offer comprehensive, choice-based programs, to support all aspects of personal wellbeing—physical, emotional, and financial—delivering meaningful value where it matters most. We strive to create a flexible, balanced work culture with a holistic approach to benefits, including generous paid time off, healthcare coverage for you and your family, and resources to create financial security and support your mental health. Who We Are: Click Here to learn more about our culture and community. Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion PayPal provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.  In addition, PayPal will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.  If you are unable to submit an application because of incompatible assistive technology or a disability, please contact us at paypalglobaltalentacquisition@paypal.com. Belonging at PayPal: Our employees are central to advancing our mission, and we strive to create an environment where everyone can do their best work with a sense of purpose and belonging. Belonging at PayPal means creating a workplace with a sense of acceptance and security where all employees feel included and valued. We are proud to have a diverse workforce reflective of the merchants, consumers, and communities that we serve, and we continue to take tangible actions to cultivate inclusivity and belonging at PayPal. Any general requests for consideration of your skills, please Join our Talent Community. We know the confidence gap and imposter syndrome can get in the way of meeting spectacular candidates. Please don’t hesitate to apply.