Jobs Private USA → Engineering, Construction and Energy → Manufacturing and hardware engineering → Research Engineer, Video Processing and Codec(Realtime Codec

Research Engineer, Video Processing and Codec(Realtime Codec Optimizations)

TikTok · San Diego, CA · posted 86 days ago

In short: Research Engineer, Video Processing and Codec(Realtime Codec Optimizations) at TikTok in San Diego, CA, posted 86 days ago.

By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 08/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.

TikTokemployer
San Diego, CAlocation
Manufacturing and hardware engsub-niche
86 days agoposted
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The job

LIVE Live feed (private-sector employer) Source: The Muse public API · Data: listed 2026-08-14

EmployerTikTok
LocationSan Diego, California
FieldEngineering, Construction and Energy › Manufacturing and hardware engineering
LevelMid Level
Source categoryScience and Engineering
Posted2026-08-14 (86 days ago)
Work arrangementOn-site at the location listed
PayNot published in the source listing

Job description

Responsibilities

Team Introduction
Our Realtime Codec Optimization Team's mission is to promote cutting-edge research in multimedia (including, but not limited to compression, image/video data processing), and to transfer technologies into our live-streaming products for better serving our hundreds of millions of users. We are looking for exceptional individuals from all areas of video compression and processing, who have a track record of research excellence, a passion to shape the future of video processing, and the potential to become an outstanding leader in the field.

Responsibilities
- Design and develop commercial realtime video codecs for 2D/3D video, Multiview video, 360-degree video, light field, et al.
- Design and develop encoding and decoding framework and optimization algorithms for live-streaming usecases
- Research and develop video encoding algorithms in heterogeneous platforms
- Research and develop visual quality-oriented video coding and processing algorithms
- Prepare encoder/decoder interface documentations
- Participate in the design and implementation of self-developed transmission protocols

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree or above in computer science/electrical engineering/mathematics/statistics and related disciplines
- Strong Computer Science fundamentals (algorithms, data structures, software design) and problem-solving skills
- Good understanding of state-of-art compression algorithms
- Excellent programming, debugging, and optimization skills in one or more general-purpose programming languages including but not limited to: C/C++
- Collaborative mindset, with solid written and verbal communication skills

Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in development of image/video related applications, such as live streaming, video conference, offline transcoding
- Familiar with Neural Network-based image/video coding and processing
- Familiar with one of the video compression standards, e.g., AVS/H.264/H.265/VVC/AV1 and its reference software
- Familiar with NEON/SIMD, and multi-threading design
- Experience in international standardization work
- Rich experience in video coding standards (e.g., for image/video compression, file format, system)
- Publications in the academic conferences or journals in the subject

Job Information

[For Pay Transparency] Compensation Description (annually)

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $153900 - $300960 annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units.

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure).

The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:

1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;

2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and

3. Exercising sound judgment.

Explore around this job

Field: Engineering, Construction and Energy Sub-niche: Manufacturing and hardware engineering All jobs at TikTok Jobs in California Jobs in San Diego, CA San Diego city guide California state guide San Diego County economy

View this job and apply on The Muse →

You apply on The Muse or on the employer's page; AtiveSite does not receive or process applications and is not affiliated with The Muse. The description above is shown as the source published it.

About the role

This is a Mid Level role in the Engineering, Construction and Energy field (Manufacturing and hardware engineering) at TikTok. Mid-level roles usually expect some years of relevant experience and the ability to work with limited supervision.

We could not match this job title to one occupation in the official wage statistics, so no pay estimate is shown. Pay is not in the source listing; ask the employer for the range and compare in the 240 job niches.

Does the pay work here? (estimate)

Estimate for a wage earner: 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction (IRS), Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45% (+0.9% above $200,000 single / $250,000 married), and a state rate you set; set your own state tax rate. It ignores credits, pre-tax deductions, local taxes and benefits. Sources: IRS: tax year 2026 inflation adjustments · SSA wage base per Federal Register notice 2025-19763.

How to prepare and behave

This is editorial guidance, not information from the employer.

Know your rights as a candidate and an employee:

The city

The job is in San Diego, CA. Below is what the official statistics say about living and working there.

How San Diego compares. Among the 145 largest places in California, San Diego is #2 by population, #17 for long commutes (#1 = fewest), #116 for homeownership (#1 = highest), #39 for college degrees (#1 = most). Its county, San Diego County, is #8 of 58 counties for average pay ($82,854).

The place in numbers

San Diego has 1,389,526 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 3.5% of the population of California. It covers 326 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 4,261 people per square mile. The median age is 36.2, 4% younger than the state median (36.2 against 37.9).

Housing

The median gross rent is $2,313 a month (rent plus utilities), 14% above the state median ($2,313 against $2,036). Over a year that is 25.7% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is $906,700, which is 8.4 times the median household income ($108,077); a ratio above 5 usually means buying is out of reach without savings or a second income. 47.3% of households own their home, 15% below the state average (47.3% against 55.9%).

Work and pay

The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metropolitan area has 1,538,060 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $58,690 a year, 15% above the national median ($58,690 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are food preparation and serving related (161,910 jobs, median $38,840); office and administrative support (155,940 jobs, median $52,940); sales and related (124,550 jobs, median $44,010). The area is most specialised in life, physical, and social science (1.7 times) and architecture and engineering (1.5 times), where the share of workers is well above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are management ($136,440) and computer and mathematical ($129,520). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of San Diego County was 4.7%. 65.1% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in San Diego County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.

Getting around

Among workers, 62.6% drive alone, 2.7% use public transit, 3.5% walk, 21.2% work from home. 9.5% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 51% below the state average (9.5% against 19.4%).

People and education

51.0% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 38% above the state share (51.0% against 37.1%). 25.1% of residents were born outside the United States, 7% below the state share (25.1% against 27.0%). The poverty rate is 11.0%, 8% below the state rate (11.0% against 12.0%).

Climate

The warmest month is Aug, averaging 77°F (24.9°C), and the coolest is Dec at 51°F (10.7°C). About 320 mm (13 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Feb is the wettest month (70 mm) and Jun the driest (2 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.

Nearby cities to compare

Closest cities in this guide: El Cajon (10 miles, rent 20% lower); Chula Vista (15 miles, rent 4% lower); San Marcos (22 miles, similar rent); Escondido (22 miles, rent 12% lower). Rent differences are against San Diego; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.

Full guide to San Diego →California guideAll jobs in San Diego

Official links for San Diego

These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.

Where to live

CITY Official statistics Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Places within 50 miles (straight line) of San Diego, CA that have a guide, with what living there costs. No pay estimate is shown because the title did not match one occupation.

Sort:
Place ⇅Distance from the job city ⇅Median rent ⇅Median home value ⇅Median household income ⇅Commute 45+ min ⇅Rent as % of occupation pay ⇅Open jobs there ⇅
San Diego, CA0 mi$2,313$906,700$108,0779.5%n/aJobs
El Cajon, CA10 mi$1,856$681,700$67,51110.7%n/aJobs
Chula Vista, CA15 mi$2,229$758,700$108,03217.6%n/aJobs
San Marcos, CA22 mi$2,348$868,000$109,37714.0%n/a—
Escondido, CA22 mi$2,046$714,500$91,96716.8%n/aJobs
Carlsbad, CA23 mi$2,808$1,257,000$142,74816.6%n/aJobs
Vista, CA27 mi$2,249$762,400$94,97514.4%n/a—
Oceanside, CA30 mi$2,303$770,300$97,73718.3%n/a—
Temecula, CA47 mi$2,347$679,700$121,06335.1%n/a—

Career paths

We could not match this title to one occupation, so here are the other sub-niches in Engineering, Construction and Energy, where your skills may carry over:

Construction and field engineering (189) Energy and utilities (394)

Distances

CITY Calculation (straight line) Source: U.S. Census Bureau Gazetteer (coordinates) · Data: 2024

How far San Diego, CA is from the 20 largest US cities, in straight-line miles (not driving distance). Click a column to sort.

Sort:
From ⇅Straight-line distance (miles) ⇅Population of that city ⇅
San Diego, CA0 mi1,389,526
Los Angeles, CA111 mi3,857,263
Phoenix, AZ296 mi1,642,323
San Jose, CA407 mi990,138
San Francisco, CA475 mi830,235
Denver, CO833 mi718,877
Seattle, WA1,059 mi754,195
San Antonio, TX1,123 mi1,479,835
Oklahoma City, OK1,135 mi697,125
Fort Worth, TX1,148 mi963,194
Austin, TX1,153 mi979,539
Dallas, TX1,181 mi1,307,930
Houston, TX1,298 mi2,328,253
Chicago, IL1,724 mi2,711,226
Indianapolis, IN1,782 mi885,860
Columbus, OH1,950 mi914,802
Charlotte, NC2,074 mi903,844
Jacksonville, FL2,085 mi977,670
Philadelphia, PA2,365 mi1,579,706
New York, NY2,427 mi8,483,844

Nearby cities with open jobs (within 120 miles)

Sort:
City ⇅Straight-line distance ⇅Open jobs ⇅
El Cajon, CA10 mi1
Chula Vista, CA15 mi2
Carlsbad, CA23 mi3
Newport Beach, CA69 mi1
Irvine, CA70 mi21
Costa Mesa, CA74 mi10
Anaheim, CA80 mi50
Compton, CA98 mi3
Huntington Park, CA102 mi2
El Segundo, CA106 mi102
Culver City, CA110 mi6
Los Angeles, CA111 mi494
Beverly Hills, CA114 mi2
Burbank, CA117 mi6

The employer

TikTok is the employer in this listing. See all its open jobs here →

Company description (from The Muse): As the leading destination for short-form mobile video, TikTok’s mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy.

size: Large Size; industries: Entertainment & Gaming, Social Media, Technology; locations on The Muse: Dubai, United Arab Emirates, London, United Kingdom, Los Angeles, CA, New York, NY, Paris, France, Singapore.

We do not hold headcount or revenue for this employer. Check its careers site and, if it is listed on a stock exchange, its public filings (SEC EDGAR search).

The employer's profile on The Muse →

What it is like to work at a company (culture, schedules, benefits) is not in the source data, so we do not describe it. Read the description and ask the questions under "How to prepare".

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FAQ

What is the Research Engineer, Video Processing and Codec(Realtime Codec Optimizations) job at TikTok?

A mid level role in engineering, construction and energy (manufacturing and hardware engineering) listed 86 days ago. The full description is on this page and on The Muse.

Where is this job?

San Diego, CA.

How do I apply?

Use the "View this job and apply on The Muse" button. AtiveSite does not receive applications.

How much does it pay?

The listing does not publish pay, and we could not match the title to one official occupation.

What is the cost of living there?

Median rent in San Diego is $2,313 a month and median household income $108,077 (ACS 2020–2024).

How old is this listing?

It was posted on 2026-08-14 (86 days ago). Jobs older than 90 days are not shown.

Are there similar jobs?

Yes: browse manufacturing and hardware engineering jobs in California.

Sources and terms

AtiveSite is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Muse, the employer or any government agency, and does not process applications. Verify every detail with the employer before acting.

Sources

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