Staff Software Engineer (AI)

TL;DR

Staff Software Engineer (Backend/AI): Leading the development of robust backend systems that power API, Claude Code, and Claude.ai with an accent on scalability, reliability, and product impact. Focus on designing complex infrastructure, driving cross-functional alignment, and translating frontier model capabilities into production-grade features for enterprise and consumer users.

Location: Must be based in or able to commute to San Francisco, CA, New York City, NY, or Seattle, WA (Hybrid: at least 25% in-office)

Salary: $405,000 - $485,000 USD

Company

hirify.global is an AI safety and research company dedicated to building reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems that are beneficial to society.

What you will do

• Scope and lead complex, multi-month backend projects from ambiguity to execution.
• Drive architectural decisions for large-scale systems serving hundreds of thousands of users.
• Collaborate with product, inference, and research teams to productionize model capabilities.
• Build and optimize foundational API infrastructure, including vision, tool use, and enterprise management tools.
• Design operational processes to improve system reliability and team efficiency.
• Mentor and guide peers to foster growth and technical excellence.

Requirements

• 8+ years of backend or product engineering experience.
• Proven track record as a technical lead for large-scale, high-adoption production systems.
• Strong fundamentals in distributed systems, API design, and cloud infrastructure.
• Ability to drive alignment across technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Must be able to work on-site in San Francisco, New York City, or Seattle (25%+ frequency).
• Valid work authorization required (Visa sponsorship available).

Nice to have

• Experience with enterprise SaaS platforms, billing/permissions infrastructure, or compliance frameworks.
• Background in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, or legal tech.
• Experience productizing ML/AI model capabilities and addressing production failure modes.
• Expertise in building agentic systems or complex developer tools.

Culture & Benefits

• Collaborative and empirical research-driven work environment.
• Competitive compensation packages with equity.
• Generous vacation and parental leave policies.
• Flexible working hours to support work-life balance.
• High-impact projects focused on large-scale AI advancement.