Staff Data Scientist, NIRA

Job description

JOIN THE TILT TEAM At Tilt, we see a side of people that traditional lenders miss. Our mobile-first products and machine learning-powered credit models look beyond credit scores, using over 250 real-time financial signals to recognize real potential. With millions of customers worldwide, we're not just changing how people access financial products — we're creating a new credit system that backs the working, whatever they're working toward. NIRA is building a consumer credit platform for Middle India, targeting ~200m underservied people. Active in 5000+ cities and processing 15,000+ loan applications/day, NIRA is backed by and integrated with US-based Tilt https://tilt.com/about/. This is a hybrid role, requiring you to work in our Bangalore office 2-3 days/week. THE OPPORTUNITY: STAFF DATA SCIENTIST We’re hiring for a Staff Data Scientist to help expand Tilt’s credit modeling and risk analytics capability for our India-based business, NIRA. This is a high impact role with a direct mandate to build and refine underwriting models as well as other models, working at the intersection of credit, data science, and leadership. You’ll collaborate with a lean but growing team, applying advanced modeling techniques to predict loss performance, leverage alternative data sources, and build next-generation tools that shape credit access for millions. HOW YOU'LL MAKE AN IMPACT - NIRA is undertaking a solid turn in unit economics with a view to growing to being the largest fintech in India, and this is an opportunity to build foundational credit models and features from the ground up. - With direct exposure to leadership, your work will shape both near-term lending performance and long-term data infrastructure. - You will partner directly with cross-functional teams across credit, engineering, and leadership, bringing strong project and stakeholder management skills to a lean, fast-growing team. - Work with alternative data where the underwriting process and modeling reflect the maturity of the market WHY YOU'RE A GREAT FIT - 7+ years of deep expertise in predictive modeling, ideally within credit risk or actuarial settings. - Strong proficiency in Python, SQL, and ML libraries like scikit-learn, LightGBM, XGBoost. - Familiarity with AI tools such as Claude, Codex or agentic workflows - Experience building models from scratch and owning projects end-to-end - Strong stakeholder management skills; experience partnering with cross-functional teams to drive outcomes. - Clear communication skills, including the ability to present complex findings to non-technical leadership. - Experience working in high-growth, ambiguous environments with lean teams. NICE-TO-HAVES - Fintech experience - especially in credit/lending models or alternative underwriting. - Familiarity with legacy credit systems and how to modernize them. - Familiarity with funnel management and ways to novate reject rules into modeling outcomes - Exposure to the India’s credit markets and ability to transfer insights between geographies. - Experience with models across the loan life cycle - Knowledge of deep learning frameworks (TensorFlow, PyTorch) and modeling (CNN, RNN) — a plus but not essential. OUR INTERVIEW PROCESS 1. Initial Recruiter Call: A conversation to learn about your experience and what you're looking for in your next role. 2. Hiring Manager Interview: A deeper discussion about your background and approach to solving challenges. 3. Skills Panel: Meet with Tilt and NIRA team members to discuss your expertise and problem-solving approach through real-world scenarios. 4. Leadership Conversation: A final conversation with our CEO to discuss our mission and how you could contribute to it (and how we can help you achieve your career goals along the way). Don’t meet every qualification? We care about potential over your past. If you're bringing ambition and drive to what we're building, we want to hear from you. WHAT YOU'LL GET AT TILT - Virtual-first teamwork: The Tilt team is collaborating across 14 countries, 12 time zones, and counting. You’ll get started with a WFH office reimbursement. - Competitive pay: We're big on potential, and it's reflected in our competitive compensation packages and generous equity. - Complete support: Find flexible health plans at every premium level, and substantial subsidies that stand up to global standards. - Visibility is yours: You can count on direct exposure to our leadership team — we’re a team where good ideas travel quickly. - Paid global onsites: Magic happens IRL: we gather twice yearly to reconnect over shared meals or kayaking adventures. (We’ve visited Vail, San Diego, and Mexico City, to name a few.) - Impact is recognized: Growth opportunities follow your contributions, not rigid promotion timelines. THE TILT WAY We're looking for people who chase excellence and impact. Those who stand behind their work, celebrating the wins and learning from the missteps equally. We foster an environment where every voice is valued and mutual respect is non-negotiable — brilliant jerks need not apply. We're in this together, working to expand access to fair credit and prove that people are incredible. When you join us, it's not just another day at the [virtual] office, you're helping millions of hardworking people reach better financial futures. You’re pushing ahead in your career? We can get behind that. Join us in building the credit system that people deserve.