Staff Researcher, Agentic Commerce

Company Description
Etsy is the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. We build, power, and evolve the tools and technologies that connect millions of entrepreneurs with millions of buyers around the world. As an Etsy Inc. employee, whether a team member of Etsy or Depop, you will tackle unique, meaningful, and large-scale problems alongside passionate coworkers, all the while making a rewarding impact and Keeping Commerce Human.

Salary Range:

$165,000.00 - $215,000.00

What’s the role?

We’re looking for a Staff Researcher, Agentic Commerce to help define the next generation of intelligent, autonomous shopping and selling experiences.

As a Staff Researcher, you will operate at the intersection of AI agents, marketplaces, and human-centered design, understanding the seam between agent-assisted experiences, and how people collaborate with, and trust agentic systems in commerce. You’ll partner closely with product, design, engineering, and analytics to uncover insights that advise both near-term product decisions and long-term investments.

This is a high-impact individual contributor role with influence across the group and research team. You will set research direction in an emerging space, mentor others, and ensure that customer understanding meaningfully informs how agentic systems are built and deployed.

This is a full-time position reporting to the Director of Research. In addition to salary, you will also be eligible for an equity package, an annual performance bonus, and our competitive benefits that support you and your family as part of your total rewards package at Etsy.

For this role, we are considering candidates based in the United States. Candidates living within commutable distance of Etsy’s Brooklyn Office Hub may be the first to be considered. For candidates within commutable distance, Etsy requires in-office attendance once or twice per week depending on your proximity to the office. Etsy offers different work modes to meet the variety of needs and preferences of our team. Learn more details about our work modes and workplace safety policies here.

What’s this team like at Etsy?

The Agentic Commerce team is focused on building a future where AI agents participate in commerce—helping buyers discover, evaluate, and purchase, and enabling sellers to automate operations and scale their businesses.

We’re exploring questions like:

• How do users build trust in autonomous purchasing decisions?

• What does “control” look like when agents act on a user’s behalf?

• How do customer expectations for product information change when AI agents are evaluating options on their behalf?

• What new behaviors and risks emerge in agent-mediated marketplaces?

What does the day-to-day look like?

• Set the research agenda: Define and lead a portfolio of foundational and evaluative research passionate about agentic interactions, trust, and automation in commerce

• Compose product and business direction: Translate insights into clear strategic recommendations that influence roadmaps and UX patterns

• Investigate human-agent interaction: Conduct studies with buyers and sellers interacting with AI agents — and the experiential moments that follow

• Data triangulation: Draw from behavioral data, consumer trends, and primary research — designing creative approaches to arrive at a clear point of view

• Drive cross-functional alignment: Partner with Product, Design, Engineering, and partner teams to ensure user needs are central to decision-making

• Connect findings across research: Work with researchers in adjacent spaces to build a coherent picture of how AI is shaping the customer experience across the platform

• Mentor and elevate craft: Support other researchers and give to a culture of high-quality, forward-thinking research

• Of course, this is just a sample of the kinds of work this role will require! You should assume that your role will encompass other tasks, too, and that your job duties and responsibilities may change from time to time at Etsy's discretion, or otherwise applicable with local law.

Qualities that will help you thrive in this role are:

• Deep expertise and creativity in UX research methods, with a track record of leading sophisticated, ambiguous problem spaces

• POV on human-agent interaction - trust, clarity, and what it means to delegate decisions to an intelligent system across multi-turn experiences

• Understands how consumer trust and adoption of AI are evolving — and brings those external signals into research planning and recommendations

• Comfortable operating at multiple altitudes — from hands-on execution to shaping org-level direction

• Developed a research roadmap, not just a study plan — you can sequence areas of inquiry and explain the prioritization to partners

• Skilled communicator who can influence senior collaborators and communicate research as decisions, not just findings

• Passion for exploring the future of commerce and reimagining how humans and intelligent systems collaborate

Additional Information
 

What's Next
If you're interested in joining the team at Etsy, please share your resume with us and feel free to include a cover letter if you'd like. As we hope you've seen already, Etsy is a place that values individuality and variety. We don't want you to be like everyone else -- we want you to be like you! So tell us what you're all about.
 
Our Promise
At Etsy, we believe that a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace furthers relevance, resilience, and longevity. We encourage people from all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and experiences to apply. Etsy is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. If, due to a disability, you need an accommodation during any part of the application or interview process, please let your recruiter know. While Etsy supports visa sponsorship, sponsorship opportunities may be limited to certain roles and skills.