Principal Data Scientist

Level Up Your Career!   At Kwalee, you’ll join a gaming powerhouse that boasts a mobile empire with 1.5 billion+ downloads alongside a thriving PC & Console division that has achieved numerous global chart-topping releases across Steam, Consoles, and Amazon, driving millions of Wishlists. Most recently publishing breakout hits such as The Precinct and Town to City. It’s a unique chance to bring your expertise to a global studio that dominates both the mobile, and the indie PC and Console space.   At Kwalee, as well as a competitive salary we also offer; Private Medical Insurance, Dental Insurance, Life Assurance, Royal London Pension, a Free On-site Gym, Dog-friendly Office, LinkedIn Learning, 25 holiday days + bank holidays, and 1 day extra holiday for each year of service capped at 5.
Kwalee are seeking a highly talented Principal Data Scientist to set the data science and ML strategy in partnership with the Director of AI and Technology.
They will also lead high-impact modelling, experimentation, and productionised ML to understand player behaviour and market trends. Alongside this the Principal Data Scientist will mentor and grow data scientists and graduates, and bridge business stakeholders and technical delivery.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Direction & Roadmap

• Define the data science and ML roadmap in partnership with the Director of AI and Technology and wider tech leadership.
• Prioritise the team’s model and experiment backlog by measurable business value.
• Translate ambiguous commercial problems into hypotheses, experiments, and ML products.

Modelling, Experimentation & Delivery

• Design, train, evaluate, and productionise ML models across the relevant techniques (classification, regression, recommenders, LTV, uplift, sequence models, embeddings).
• Lead A/B automation testing and causal inference work; own statistical rigour and readouts.
• Ensure models are explainable, monitored, retrained on a defined cadence, and have clear ownership.

Leadership & Talent Development

• Line-manage data scientists and graduate data scientists; set goals, conduct 1:1s, support career growth.
• Set the technical bar through code review, model review, and architecture review.
• Create a learning culture: paper reading, experiment write-ups, internal tech talks, Kaggle / open-source participation.

Stakeholder Partnership & Communication

• Act as the principal data science point of contact for Studio, UA, Growth, and Finance leaders.
• Communicate results clearly to non-technical leaders; drive decisions, not just decks.
• Contribute the data science view into SLT and board-level reporting where required.

Governance, Ethics & Risk

• Ensure data science work complies with privacy, security, and platform policy (GDPR, COPPA where relevant, store policy).
• Document model risk, bias considerations, and mitigation steps for any customer-facing model.
• Operate within agreed cost guardrails for compute, storage, and third-party APIs.
• Ad-hoc other tasks which may arise from time to time and be assigned to you by your line manager.

Requirements:

• Degree in Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Chemistry, Engineering or a related quantitative disciplines. MSc or PhD is a plus.
• 5+ years applied data science / ML, including 2+ years tech-leading or line-managing.
• Demonstrable track record of ML models in production delivering measurable business outcomes.
• Games, mobile, or consumer-tech experience preferred but not required.
• Expertise in Python and SQL, Cloud & Data Platforms and Data Visualisation.
• Experience in technical leadership and mentoring team members.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.

Why Kwalee?

• Generous Holiday: Start with 25 days of annual leave, plus bank holidays. You'll also earn an extra day for every year of service, up to 5 years!
• Flexible Working: We offer core hours that allow you to work flexibly around your life, and a bank of 'Work From Home' days to use when you need them.
• Health Cover: Private medical cover, life assurance, a solid pension plan, and cover for dental and optical care.
• Recharge: Take advantage of our on-site gym and a supportive atmosphere that prioritises your wellbeing.
• Free Food & Drink: Fuel your day with unlimited free snacks and drinks.
• Gaming Goodies: Receive Steam codes for all our game releases!
• Dog-Friendly Office: Bring your furry friend to our vibrant, fun office.
• Office Location: Leamington Spa office location, with free parking and electric charging stations.
• Merch & Events: Get exclusive Kwalee merch, enjoy fun seasonal events, and stay informed with regular town halls.
• Growth & Learning: Full access to LinkedIn Learning to support your continuous professional development.

  Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion   At Kwalee, we take pride in being an equal opportunity employer, where we believe that diversity and inclusion are essential to driving creativity. We are committed to creating a safe, welcoming, and supportive environment where everyone can thrive.   Our culture is built on celebrating the diverse voices of our team members, fuelling innovation and strengthening our connection to our players. We are dedicated to advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion across all areas of life, including age, disability, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.   We recognise the importance of self-development, career progression, and well-being in retaining our talented team. At Kwalee, we celebrate individuality and encourage everyone to bring their authentic selves to work.