As a Senior Data Scientist on Lyft’s Central Market Management & AI (CMM&AI) team, you will work at the intersection of Machine Learning and Economics to build scalable optimization systems that directly impact Lyft's financial performance. Your day-to-day responsibilities include formulating complex mathematical problems, developing production-grade ML models, and integrating these into live decision-making frameworks. You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to define technical roadmaps and drive large-scale projects from concept to execution, ensuring alignment with business goals. The role requires advanced proficiency in Python and SQL, a background in quantitative fields like Operations Research or Computer Science, and experience in deploying models in production environments. Ideal candidates have expertise in pricing optimization and marketplace design, along with the ability to influence technical roadmaps and advise on long-term algorithmic trade-offs.
Design and solve complex mathematical optimization problems to power Lyft’s marketplace decisions.
Build, deploy, and maintain production-grade ML models, integrating them into live systems with robust monitoring.
Own the full lifecycle of models from problem framing through experimental validation and production deployment.
Drive large-scale technical projects from concept to execution, ensuring alignment with business priorities.
Contribute to the multi-quarter technical roadmap for foundational models, shaping next-generation optimization systems.
What we're looking for
M.S. in a quantitative field such as Operations Research, Mathematics, Computer Science, Statistics, Economics.
4+ years experience developing and deploying optimization and machine learning models in production.
Advanced proficiency in Python and SQL for writing clean, maintainable code.
Strong first-principles mathematical reasoning skills to solve complex problems.
Excellent communication skills with a track record of collaborating across teams.
Experience influencing technical roadmaps and advising on long-term algorithmic trade-offs.
Market check
Salary context
Competitive pay
How this pay compares to similar roles
Similar $176k
This role $166k
$116k
most similar roles pay here
$237k
This role pays less than
51%
of similar roles. Most pay
$135,250–$216,300
— the shaded band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$166k
versus about
$176k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About Lyft
Lyft is a transportation network company offering ride-hailing services across the US and Canada.
Lyft currently has
31 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$148,000–$185,000
across 31 roles with salary data.