Staff, Data Scientist (Pricing)

About the Role

The Walmart Global Tech Applied AI Data Science team is looking for a Staff Data Scientist to work alongside our team of data scientists to build complex, cutting-edge, and scalable algorithms for our Pricing organization. We are shaping the future of retail and are ready to work closely with merchants to solve their problems.

About the Team

The Applied AI team researches and develops advanced algorithms that power strategic decision-making across pricing, markdown optimization, price recommendations, price elasticity, assortment optimization, supply chain, replenishment, and store layout. You will work closely with data scientists, machine learning engineers, operations research scientists, and data analysts, while collaborating with business leaders, product managers, pricing strategists, software engineers, and data engineers to build AI-driven solutions at enterprise scale.

Our work combines techniques from forecasting, optimization, operations research, machine learning (classical ML, deep learning, reinforcement learning), causal inference, experimentation, and statistics to solve complex pricing and retail challenges. We develop innovative AI solutions that directly influence business strategy and customer experience, and our research is regularly published in top-tier conferences and journals.

Responsibilities

• Design and deploy prescriptive ML models to address high-impact pricing and markdown needs, ensuring alignment with Walmart’s Global Tech strategy and EDLP integrity.
• Perform elasticity analysis across large data sets and category segments to empower data-driven pricing decisions.
• Own the E2E Price Recommendation lifecycle, including scoping, feature engineering, causal modeling, experimentation (A/B testing), and ongoing performance optimization.
• Develop advanced pricing and optimization solutions using:
  • Causal Inference & Elasticity: Identification of treatment effects beyond simple log-log approaches (Double ML, Instrumental Variables, Uplift modeling).
  • Optimization & Reinforcement Learning: Multi-armed bandits, Deep RL (PPO, DQN) for sequential decision-making, and constrained optimization.
  • Deep Learning: Modern architectures for demand sensing and price-response curves.
  • Uncertainty Quantification: Bayesian approaches and conformal prediction to manage the risk of price changes.
• Build explainable pricing systems: Provide model interpretability and stakeholder-facing narratives on "why" a price recommendation was made (e.g., competitor move vs. inventory health).
• Apply graph-based modeling to capture cannibalization and halo effects across product hierarchies and spatial locations (GNNs, temporal graphs).
• Establish strong evaluation and monitoring: Backtesting against historical price changes, drift detection, and calibration of price-response curves.
• Drive best practices in AgentOps: Build Agentic workflows to enable chat-based price explainability and "what-if" scenario planning for Merchants.
• Collaborate and Mentor: Partner with Product, Business, and Engineering to set technical direction and mentor the next generation of MLEs.

Requirements

• 8+ years in Data Science / Applied ML (or PhD + 5 years), with deep hands-on exposure to pricing, elasticity, or causal modeling.
• Demonstrated experience delivering production-grade optimization models with measurable financial outcomes (e.g., Margin lift, Inventory turnover).
• Strong knowledge of pricing dynamics: Seasonality, competitor indexing, promotional impact, regime changes, and price-point psychology.
• Hands-on experience with deep learning frameworks (PyTorch or TensorFlow) and modern architectures for decision-focused AI.
• Practical experience with Explainable AI (XAI) and communicating complex model reasoning to non-technical business stakeholders.
• Excellent coding skills in Python; strong grasp of software engineering fundamentals (testing, CI/CD, MLOps).

Qualifications

• Option 1: Bachelor's degree in Statistics, Economics, Analytics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Technology or related field and 4 years' experience in an analytics related field.
• Option 2: Master's degree in Statistics, Economics, Analytics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Technology or related field and 2 years' experience in an analytics related field.
• Option 3: 6 years' experience in an analytics or related field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Causal Inference & Decision Science: Impact estimation, counterfactuals, and policy evaluation.
• Advanced Graph Learning: Using GNNs to model cross-item elasticity and substitution patterns.
• Large-scale Data/Compute: Experience with Spark, Feature Stores, and distributed training in a cloud environment (GCP/Azure).
• Building Human-Centered AI: Dashboards for "driver decomposition" and "why the price changed" analysis.
• Agentic Frameworks: Experience deploying LLM-based agents to act as intermediaries between complex models and business users.
• Data science, machine learning, optimization models, PhD in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Information Technology, Operations Research, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Econometrics.
• Successful completion of one or more assessments in Python, Spark, Scala, or R, using open source frameworks (e.g., scikit learn, tensorflow, torch).
• Background in creating inclusive digital experiences, demonstrating knowledge in implementing Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standards, assistive technologies, and integrating digital accessibility seamlessly.

About Walmart Global Tech

Imagine working in an environment where one line of code can make life easier for hundreds of millions of people. That's what we do at Walmart Global Tech. We're a team of software engineers, data scientists, cybersecurity experts and service professionals within the world's leading retailer who make an epic impact and are at the forefront of the next retail disruption. People are why we innovate, and people power our innovations. We are people-led and tech-empowered. We train our team in the skillsets of the future and bring in experts like you to help us grow. We have roles for those chasing their first opportunity as well as those looking for the opportunity that will define their career. Here, you can kickstart a great career in tech, gain new skills and experience for virtually every industry, or leverage your expertise to innovate at scale, impact millions and reimagine the future of retail.

Walmart’s culture is a competitive advantage, and it's fostered by being together. Working together in person allows us to collaborate, align quickly and innovate with greater speed. We use our campuses to create purposeful connections rooted in deepening understanding and investing in the development of our associates.

Benefits

• Competitive pay with performance-based bonus awards.
• 401(k) match and stock purchase plan.
• Paid maternity and parental leave, PTO (including sick leave), and multiple health plans (medical, vision, dental).
• Short-term and long-term disability, company-paid life insurance.
• Paid time off for vacation, holidays, bereavement, jury duty, and voting.
• Company discounts, Military Leave Pay, adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement.
• Live Better U: Walmart-paid education benefit program for full-time and part-time associates, covering tuition, books, and fees for high school completion, bachelor's degrees, English Language Learning, and short-form certificates.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific plan or program terms.

Pay

Bentonville, Arkansas: The annual salary range for this position is $110,000.00 - $220,000.00.

Sunnyvale, California: The annual salary range for this position is $143,000.00 - $286,000.00.

Additional compensation includes annual or quarterly performance bonuses and stock for certain positions.

Schedule

This is a full-time onsite role based in Bentonville, AR or Sunnyvale, CA; remote and hybrid options are not available.

Immigration sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the United States without current or future visa sponsorship.