At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the development of cutting-edge video generation models and drive technical strategy.
- Company: Join Synthesia, a leading AI video platform backed by top investors.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible working options, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Dynamic team environment with a focus on collaboration and high-velocity execution.
- Why this job: Be at the forefront of AI innovation and make a real impact in video technology.
- Qualifications: Experience in training large-scale generative models and strong leadership skills.
The predicted salary is between 90000 - 120000 £ per year.
Synthesia is the world’s leading AI video platform for business, used by over 90% of the Fortune 100. Founded in 2017, the company is headquartered in London, with offices and teams across Europe and the US. As AI continues to shape the way we live and work, Synthesia develops products to enhance visual communication and enterprise skill development, helping people work better and stay at the center of successful organizations.
Following our recent Series E funding round, where we raised $200 million, our valuation stands at $4 billion. Our total funding exceeds $530 million from premier investors including Accel, NVentures (Nvidia's VC arm), Kleiner Perkins, GV, and Evantic Capital, alongside the founders and operators of Stripe, Datadog, Miro, and Webflow.
The opportunity at Synthesia involves a commitment to human-centric avatar video generation. We are looking for a technical leader who owns the full stack end-to-end, bridging pre-training and post-training, setting long-term direction alongside research leadership, and being present at the hardest parts of the work.
About the role: Synthesia's video generation capability is core to everything we ship. It involves roughly 15 people working daily across pre-training and post-training stages, requiring a different kind of technical leadership. We're looking for a Principal Research Engineer (L7) to own the full technical stack for offline video generation. This is a senior individual contributor position with outsized scope and influence.
What you'll do:
- Own the end-to-end technical direction for offline video generation, spanning pre-training and post-training.
- Partner with research leadership and team leads to define a unified long-term roadmap.
- Identify critical technical gaps across the video generation pipeline and unblock them.
- Increase the velocity at which research ships to product.
- Coach and elevate more junior researchers and engineers.
- Help shape team structure and refine processes for cohesive execution across research.
You’ll thrive in this role if you have:
- A proven track record training large-scale video generation models from scratch.
- Deep experience with post-training techniques at scale.
- A proven track record with data quality.
- The ability to think strategically about multi-year research direction.
- Strong cross-functional influence.
- A leadership style grounded in technical involvement.
- A genuine hunger to unlock new capabilities and an obsession with shipping.
Particularly relevant experience includes:
- Owning a major model generation or capability jump end-to-end.
- Working across both pre-training and post-training stages on the same model family.
- Experience operating at scale with large distributed training runs.
- Applying alignment and fine-tuning techniques in a video or multimodal context.
- Leading or significantly influencing the technical direction of a research team.
Dealbreakers: We will not be a good fit if you prefer to lead without staying technically involved, or if clear and direct communication across research and product isn't one of your strengths. This role requires presence at the frontier of the work, not above it.
Principal Research Engineer in London employer: Synthesia
At Synthesia, we pride ourselves on being at the forefront of AI video technology, offering a dynamic work environment that fosters innovation and collaboration. Our London headquarters provides a vibrant culture where employees are encouraged to grow through hands-on experience and mentorship, while our commitment to pushing the boundaries of video generation ensures that your contributions will have a meaningful impact. With competitive benefits and a focus on employee development, joining our team means being part of a pioneering company that values creativity and ambition.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Research Engineer in London
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in your field on LinkedIn or at industry events. A friendly chat can lead to opportunities that aren’t even advertised yet.
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio or a personal project that highlights your expertise in video generation. This is your chance to demonstrate what you can do beyond the CV.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by practising common questions and scenarios related to AI and video generation. We want you to feel confident and ready to showcase your knowledge!
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re genuinely interested in joining us at Synthesia.
We think you need these skills to ace Principal Research Engineer in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter for the Principal Research Engineer role. Highlight your experience with large-scale video generation models and how it aligns with Synthesia's mission. We want to see how you can contribute to our vision!
Showcase Your Technical Skills:Don’t hold back on detailing your technical expertise! Include specific examples of projects where you've trained generative models from scratch and any post-training techniques you've applied. This is your chance to shine, so let us know what you’ve accomplished!
Communicate Clearly:Clear communication is key in our team. When writing your application, be concise and articulate about your experiences and achievements. We appreciate straightforwardness, so make sure your passion for video generation comes through!
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows you’re keen on joining our team at Synthesia!
How to prepare for a job interview at Synthesia
✨Know Your Stuff
Make sure you brush up on your knowledge of large-scale video generation models and the specific techniques mentioned in the job description, like RLHF and DPO. Be ready to discuss your hands-on experience with these technologies and how you've applied them in past projects.
✨Show Your Leadership Style
This role requires a blend of technical expertise and leadership. Prepare examples that showcase how you've influenced teams and driven projects forward while remaining technically involved. Highlight moments where your hands-on approach made a difference.
✨Understand the Company’s Vision
Familiarise yourself with Synthesia's mission and recent developments in AI video technology. Being able to articulate how your skills align with their goals will demonstrate your genuine interest in the company and its future.
✨Prepare for Technical Challenges
Expect to face some tough technical questions or scenarios during the interview. Think through potential challenges in video generation pipelines and be ready to discuss how you would tackle them. This shows you're not just a thinker but also a doer.
