Senior Site Reliability Engineer, AI Inference

F5 Networks, Inc.; Dublin; Hybrid; EUR 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

F5 Networks, Inc. is seeking an AI Inference Engineer to bridge high-performance model development and optimized deployment environments.

The role focuses on optimizing Large Language Models for inference across data centers and edge devices, prioritizing throughput, low latency, and accuracy. You will build scalable inference engines with vLLM, TensorRT, Llama.cpp, and Ollama, and optimize hardware usage on NVIDIA GPUs, Apple Silicon, TPUs, and other accelerators.

Qualifications

• Programming in Python, C++, Rust or Go for high-performance AI workflows.
• Experience with vLLM, TensorRT, Llama.cpp or Ollama for inference development.
• Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes and cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure).
• Understanding hardware optimization for GPUs/TPUs in AI workloads.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain high-performance AI serving engines for low latency inference.
• Profile and optimize models on NVIDIA GPUs, Apple Silicon and other accelerators.
• Design auto-scaling architectures using Kubernetes for online and batch inference.
• Establish observability to monitor TTFT, tokens/second, and memory bandwidth against SLAs.

Skills

Python

C++

Rust

Golang

Tools

vLLM

TensorRT

Llama.cpp

Ollama

Job description

At F5, we strive to bring a better digital world to life. Our teams empower organizations across the globe to create, secure, and run applications that enhance how we experience our evolving digital world. We are passionate about cybersecurity, from protecting consumers from fraud to enabling companies to focus on innovation. Everything we do centers around people. That means we obsess over how to make the lives of our customers, and their customers, better. And it means we prioritize a diverse F5 community where each individual can thrive.

Job Title: AI Inference Engineer

Role Objective The AI Inference Engineer plays a critical role in the AI lifecycle by bridging the gap between high-performance model development and optimized deployment environments. This position focuses on optimizing Large Language Models (LLMs) for inference, serving diverse environments—from GPU-rich data centers to resource-constrained edge devices with a strong emphasis on maximizing throughput, minimizing latency, and maintaining model accuracy. This role is pivotal in advancing F5’s AI capabilities, ensuring enterprise-grade reliability by leveraging hardware acceleration, designing scalable infrastructure, and monitoring system performance.

Key Responsibilities

High-Performance AI Serving

Build and maintain robust inference engines using tools like vLLM, TGI (Text Generation Inference), and NVIDIA Triton, ensuring high performance at scale. Handle deployment optimizations to deliver low-latency AI serving solutions for multiple business applications.

Hardware Acceleration and Optimization

Profile and optimize models for specialized hardware backends, including NVIDIA GPUs (CUDA/TensorRT), Apple Silicon (CoreML), and AI accelerators like TPUs and LPUs. Collaborate with hardware teams to maximize utilization and performance across various computational environments.

Inference Orchestration and Scalability

Design and implement auto-scaling architectures for online (real-time) and batch inference pipelines, leveraging Kubernetes for inference routing and orchestration. Ensure software solutions are optimized for peak performance during traffic spikes, maintaining reliability and scalability.

Performance Monitoring and Observability

Establish robust observability frameworks to monitor Time to First Token (TTFT), tokens per second, and memory bandwidth utilization against service-level agreements (SLAs). Build and execute performance and load testing suites to identify bottlenecks and ensure consistent reliability at scale.

Technical Requirements

Required Skills

• Programming Languages: Proficiency in programming languages such as Python, C++, Rust, or Golang specifically for high-performance AI workflows.
• Inference Tools: Proven hands-on experience with tools like vLLM, TensorRT, Llama.cpp, and Ollama for inference development and optimization.
• Infrastructure Expertise: Strong familiarity with infrastructure technologies, including Docker, Kubernetes, and cloud platforms such as AWS, GCP, and Azure.
• Hardware Optimization Expertise: Comprehensive understanding of GPU and AI hardware, including techniques for profiling and optimizing performance for accelerators like NVIDIA GPUs and TPUs.

Preferred Experience

• Prior experience deploying Large Language Models (LLMs) with advanced techniques like Speculative Decoding or PagedAttention.
• Contributions to open-source inference libraries or hardware-level kernel development (e.g., CUDA, Triton kernels).
• Background in MLOps or SRE roles focused on high-performance AI endpoints and reliability during demand surges.
• Proficiency in designing scalable solutions for high-throughput inference environments optimized for traffic bursts.

Success Metrics (KPIs)

• Latency Reduction: Continuously improve inference latency metrics, ensuring minimal Time to First Token (TTFT) and maximum tokens per second.
• Cost Efficiency: Achieve lower "Cost per 1K Tokens" through better resource utilization and hardware optimization.
• Scalability: Maintain system stability and reliability during traffic spikes, ensuring performance consistency across environments.
• Throughput Maximization: Deploy models optimized for peak hardware usage and maximized process throughput.

Why Join F5?

• Collaborating with cutting-edge technologies and hardware solutions to support real-time AI applications.
• Advancing your career in a fast-paced, multidisciplinary environment focused on innovation, scalability, and problem-solving.
• Driving transformative projects that deliver real-time AI reliability to global customers while maintaining cost and efficiency standards.
• Working on advanced MLOps solutions that seamlessly scale enterprise AI systems and shape the future of intelligent deployment.

What Success Looks Like

As an AI Inference Engineer at F5, success is measured by: Combine technical expertise and problem-solving skills to deliver low-latency, scalable, and high-performing AI prediction systems. Collaborate efficiently across cross-functional teams, participating in knowledge sharing and system refinement. Demonstrate initiative by driving optimizations across hardware, tools, and orchestration processes, balancing immediate solutions with long-term architectural goals.

Equal Employment Opportunity It is the policy of F5 to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and employment applicants without regard to unlawful considerations of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, sensory, physical, or mental disability, marital status, veteran or military status, genetic information, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws. This policy applies to all aspects of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, benefits, training, discipline, and termination. F5 offers a variety of reasonable accommodations for candidates. Requesting an accommodation is completely voluntary. F5 will assess the need for accommodations in the application process separately from those that may be needed to perform the job. Request by contacting [e-mail].

Work Arrangements

• Hybrid: Employees within 30 commutable miles of an F5 office are required to work from the office a minimum of 30 business days per quarter.
• Remote: Primarily work from designated home location but can come into an F5 office to work or travel to an offsite location as needed.

Together, we're building a better digital world. Founded in 1996, F5 is a global leader in application delivery and security. Our premier platform helps customers secure and deliver every app, API, and piece of infrastructure across all environments. Backed by over three decades of expertise and 553 patents, our solutions protect against threats while ensuring fast, reliable digital experiences. With over 6,400 employees, we serve more than 23,000 customers in over 170 countries. To continue this work, we need people like you—the best minds in the industry. We're committed to a unique, human-first culture that encourages authenticity, prioritizes diversity and inclusion, and fosters the growth and success of our employees.