Data Scientist (ML)

Job Description

Data Scientist (ML)

Location: Remote, but within the UK.

Salary: £55,000 - £65,000 

Please note: We are unable to sponsor international visas at this time.

About Nexus Mods

Established in 2001, Nexus Mods is the largest video game modding platform on the internet - a household name in the PC gaming ecosystem.

• 71M+ registered members
• 800K+ mods for 4,000+ games
• 21B+ mod downloads

We’re currently focused on product modernisation, driving growth and building infrastructure for the next 10 years of community-powered modding.

Our Role

We are looking for the first Data Scientist to join Nexus Mods. This is an opportunity to build the intelligence layer on top of our data platform, and to unlock the ML capability that's been waiting for the right person. We have invested in the foundations, and defined the ML roadmap, so you won’t be starting from scratch. Instead, you’ll step into a high leverage role where your work immediately powers discovery, personalisation, and a thriving community and ecosystem. 

You’ll tackle a uniquely rich dataset (~900k mods, ~71m users) and turn it into structured, actionable intelligence that helps millions of users find what they love faster. From day one, your models will ship, your systems will scale, and your impact will be visible in real user growth. 

Responsibilities: 

Build the foundation (Mod Classification)

• Own the end to end pipeline, powering classification at scale (~900K mods), from labelling data to production models. 
• Turn raw data into structured, high-quality metadata that unlocks search, filtering, and personalisation. 
• Continuously improve model performance and data quality. 

Drive Discovery & Recommendations 

• Build recommendation models and improve search relevance to help users find the right mods faster. 
• Leverage behavioural signals and unique datasets (e.g.dependency graphs) to power smarter personalisation. 
• Directly impact engagement by increasing downloads, retention, and overall activity.

Requirements

• Experience as a Data Scientist or ML Engineer, with a track record of shipping models to production (not just notebooks).

• Strong proficiency in Python and the core ML ecosystem (scikit-learn, PyTorch or similar).
• Hands-on experience with NLP and text classification (we have ~900K mods to classify from unstructured descriptions and metadata).
• Experience building recommendation systems or search relevance models.
• Solid understanding of embeddings, similarity search, and how to operate them at scale.
• Able to scope and execute independently with strategic direction, not waiting for someone to hand you a spec.
• Thrives in fast-moving environments with high autonomy.
• Pragmatic mindset: you care about impact, not just model accuracy.
• Core stack: ClickHouse (warehouse), dbt (transformation), Python, with Mixpanel and Braze as downstream consumers.

Bonus Skills

• Experience with LLMs for data labelling, seed set generation, or classification pipelines.
• Familiarity with dbt or analytics engineering workflows.
• Experience with algorithmic design, optimisation, or reward modelling.
• Experience with A/B testing and causal inference.
• An understanding of games modding and knowledge of Nexus Mods.
• A love of computer games.

Benefits

• We work a 4-day week of 32 hours, with no reduction in pay.
• An allowance of £25 each month to spend on video games.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Private BUPA healthcare for you and your family.
• A very flexible training budget.
• Regular social events throughout the year. Participation is optional!