Engineering Manager (Defense)

TL;DR

Engineering Manager (Defense): Leading engineering efforts across the Middle East to deliver custom AI applications for defense and national security clients with an accent on AI agents, evaluation tooling, and automation. Focus on designing scalable backend services, architecting agentic frameworks, and managing high-performing technical teams in mission-critical environments.

Location: Must be based in the Middle East (GCC region preferred)

Company

Scale AI develops reliable AI systems and high-quality data technologies to power the world's leading models for enterprises and governments.

What you will do

• Manage and grow the engineering team in the Middle East region, driving technical delivery for defense and public sector engagements.
• Design and optimize backend services for advanced AI-driven applications, focusing on AI agents and automation.
• Lead end-to-end full stack engineering from system design and architecture through to production deployment.
• Serve as the senior technical authority on defense projects to ensure solutions meet mission-critical standards and security requirements.
• Architect and deploy AI agent frameworks and API integrations tailored to government workflows.
• Mentor engineers and foster a technically excellent, mission-driven team environment.

Requirements

• 10+ years of software engineering experience with a strong emphasis on backend and full stack development.
• 5+ years of experience managing and leading high-performing engineering teams in complex environments.
• Demonstrated domain knowledge in the defense sector, including national security priorities and regulatory requirements.
• Deep expertise in AI and machine learning, specifically with LLM-powered applications and agentic frameworks.
• Hands-on experience designing and integrating APIs in production environments (cloud and on-premises).
• Experience working in or with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region is strongly preferred.

Nice to have

• Arabic language skills.

Culture & Benefits

• Opportunity to be a founding member of the regional engineering team.
• Inclusive and equal opportunity workplace committed to diversity.
• Exposure to high-stakes, mission-critical projects impacting national security.
• Collaboration with global industry leaders and government agencies.