Machine Learning Engineer (Real-Time Speech Translation)

The posting, as LILT wrote it

ABOUT LILT

AI is changing how the world communicates — and LILT is leading that transformation.

We're on a mission to make the world's information accessible to everyone, regardless of the language they speak. We use cutting-edge AI, machine translation, and human-in-the-loop expertise to translate content faster, more accurately, and more cost-effectively without compromising on brand, voice, or quality.

At LILT, we empower our teammates with leading tools, global collaboration, and growth opportunities to do their best work. Our company virtues—Work together, win together; Find a way or make one; Dance in the customer's shoes; Quicker than they expect; Quality is Job 1—guide everything we do. We are trusted by Intel Corporation https://www.linkedin.com/company/intel-corporation/, Canva https://www.linkedin.com/company/canva/, the United States Department of Defense https://www.linkedin.com/company/deptofdefense/, the United States Air Force https://www.linkedin.com/company/united-states-air-force/, ASICS https://www.linkedin.com/company/asics/, and hundreds of global Enterprises. Backed by Sequoia, Intel Capital, and Redpoint, we’re building a category-defining company in a $50B+ global translation market being redefined by AI.

ROLE SUMMARY

We are building a new live translation product. We are looking for an ML Engineer to build the real-time speech translation backend that powers it.

You will own the real-time speech translation backend end-to-end, from live audio input to translated output. You will build on LILT's production model serving platform (Ray Serve on GPU Kubernetes clusters) and our in-house adaptive machine translation models, working closely with the senior architects of that platform and with our language processing researchers. The ASR and MT models exist. Your job is to make them work together as a low-latency streaming system that holds up in production.

This is a hands-on backend engineering role for those looking to own a real-time ML system from end to end, supported by expert guidance and a clear product vision. Our team adopts an AI-first approach, leveraging agentic coding and AI-driven PR reviews to accelerate development. We combine this with deep technical expertise, requiring not only expert Python proficiency but also a comprehensive understanding of the entire ML stack, from optimizing neural network architectures to managing production infrastructure on Kubernetes, and making informed, cost-aware decisions on hardware selection.

Location & eligibility: This position requires US citizenship and residence in the United States. Preferred locations are Washington, D.C.; Boston, MA; and Indianapolis, IN (East Coast / ET timezone preferred).

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Real-time pipeline architecture: Build and manage services for high-throughput, real-time audio and text streaming. Handle signal processing, session lifecycles, and concurrency management to ensure robust operation under load.
• ML m

[…]
r global network of professional linguists, for high-impact content that requires expert review

LILT IN THE NEWS

• Featured in The Software Report’s https://www.thesoftwarereport.com/the-top-100-software-companies-of-2024/ Top 100 Software Companies!
• LILT makes it onto the Inc. 5000 List https://labs.lilt.com/lilt-listed-on-the-2024-inc-5000.
• LILT’s continues to be an intellectual powerhouse, holding numerous patents https://patents.justia.com/inventor/john-sturdy-denero that help power the most efficient and sophisticated AI and language models in the industry.
• Check out all our news on our website https://lilt.com/news.

Information collected and processed as part of your application process, including any job applications you choose to submit, is subject to LILT's Privacy Policy at https://lilt.com/legal/privacy.

At LILT, we are committed to a fair, inclusive, and transparent hiring process. As part of our recruitment efforts, we may use artificial intelligence (AI) and automated tools to assist in the evaluation of applications, including résumé screening, assessment scoring, and interview analysis. These tools are designed to support human decision-making and help us identify qualified candidates efficiently and objectively. All final hiring decisions are made by people. If you have any concerns, require accommodations, or would like to opt-out of the use of AI in our hiring process, please let us know at recruiting@lilt.com.

LILT is an equal opportunity employer. We extend equal opportunity to all individuals without regard to an individual’s race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic characteristics, veteran or marital status, pregnancy, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state or federal laws. We are committed to the principles of fair employment and the elimination of all discriminatory practices.