Software Engineer AI Gateway

Kong; Milano; On-site; EUR 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Kong, based in Milan, is seeking a Software Engineer for their AI Gateway Team. You will focus on building and maintaining API management software, implementing new features, and solving bugs. Ideal candidates have 3+ years in server-side development, familiarity with Golang or Rust, and a strong sense of ownership.

The role involves collaboration with a distributed team, contributing to AI and LLM innovation, and requires excellent technical and communication skills. Bonus points for experience with NGINX or Istio.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of programming experience in server-side applications.
• Hands-on experience with either Golang or Rust.
• Solid technical expertise in Linux systems troubleshooting.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain API management software for AI and LLMs.
• Implement innovative features for Kong AI Gateway.
• Perform bug troubleshooting and performance tuning.

Skills

Programming in server-side applications

Golang or Rust

Building and debugging scalable applications

Linux systems troubleshooting

Distributed systems experience

Very good communication skills

Tools

NGINX/OpenResty/Kong/LuaJIT

Envoy or Istio

Job description

Are you ready to unlock intelligence?

If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.

About the role

You will join the engineering team that builds the Kong AI gateway, empowering companies and developers around the world to govern every step of their AI & LLM based innovation.

As a Software Engineer in the AI Gateway Team, you will be working on core features such as multi-LLM routing and balancing, semantic caching and routing, MCP, and more.

What you’ll be doing

• Responsible for building and maintaining API management software for AI and LLMs and its underlying stack.
• Implement new innovative features including proxying capabilities, load balancing, database support that extend Kong AI Gateway’s offering.
• Bug troubleshooting, performance tuning and low-level optimizations.
• Fill the gaps between Kong and third-party deployment platforms and tooling.
• Any additional tasks required by manager.

What you’ll bring

• 3+ years of programming in server-side applications and components.
• Hands on experience with either Golang or Rust.
• Experience building and debugging applications that are highly scalable, distributed, reliable, and resilient.
• Solid hands-on low-level technical expertise in Linux systems troubleshooting, and profiling.
• Experience in distributed systems, Linux networking stack and computer systems programming; Kong works with APIs on both L7 and L4 transports and protocols, so this expertise and knowledge are required.
• Comfortable working with a remotely distributed team.
• Strong sense of ownership and excellent verbal and written communication skills -- engineers at Kong write the documentation for their products.
• Familiarity with AI LLM concepts and applications development.

Bonus Points

• Hands on experience with NGINX/OpenResty/Kong/LuaJIT.
• Hands on experience with Envoy or Istio.