AI Engineer, Special Programs

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 125,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage

401(k) retirement plan

Paid parental leave

Paid vacation and holidays

Job summary

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP is looking for an AI Engineer to work on engineering and deploying AI capabilities for U.S. federal agencies. This role involves optimizing AI model integrations, creating developer tools, and collaborating with various teams to ensure AI is useful for missions.

Candidates should have a strong background in software engineering, particularly in Python, and a commitment to safety and ethical standards. A Bachelor's in a STEM field is required, along with excellent problem-solving skills.

Qualifications

• 1+ years of experience in building scalable systems or AI/ML applications.
• Familiarity with government technology environments.
• Experience with cloud platforms and containerization.

Responsibilities

• Design and optimize integrations between AI models and government systems.
• Collaborate on custom SDKs and APIs.
• Partner with stakeholders to prototype solutions.

Skills

Hands-on software engineering experience

Strong Python proficiency

Excellent communication skills

Problem-solving skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in computer science or STEM

Tools

AWS

GCP

Azure

Docker

Kubernetes

Job description

AI ENGINEER, SPECIAL PROGRAMS

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

This team focuses on engineering and deploying AI capabilities (models, APIs, tools, and integrations) for U.S. federal agencies. You'll work closely with product, research, infrastructure, and legal/governance teams to make AI and future models maximally useful for missions while upholding safety, transparency, and ethical standards.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Design, build, and optimize integrations between AI frontier models (e.g., Grok family) and government systems, platforms, and data environments.
• Collaborate on custom SDKs, APIs, developer tools, and documentation tailored for government and enterprise developers.
• Partner with agency stakeholders to understand requirements, prototype solutions, and iterate rapidly based on real‑world feedback.
• Ship production-grade code and features with a bias toward speed, simplicity, and measurable impact.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in computer science or another STEM discipline; or 2+ years of professional experience in software development in lieu of a degree.

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• 1+ years of hands‑on software engineering experience building scalable systems, APIs, or AI/ML applications (strong Python proficiency, other languages a plus).
• Experience working with large language models, generative AI, or agentic systems—either in research, production, or applied engineering.
• Familiarity with government or public sector technology environments (federal civilian agencies, state/local gov, or regulated industries such as healthcare, finance, or infrastructure).
• Strong product sensibility: ability to translate ambiguous stakeholder needs into concrete technical solutions.
• Demonstrated ability to write clean, maintainable, high-performance code under tight timelines.
• Exceptional problem‑solving skills and intellectual curiosity—you thrive on hard, ambiguous challenges.
• Excellent communication skills; you can explain complex technical concepts to non‑technical partners clearly and concisely.
• Prior work on AI safety, governance, red‑teaming, or responsible AI deployment.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), containerization (Docker/Kubernetes), or API orchestration.
• Background in policy‑adjacent technical roles, civic tech, or public‑interest technology.
• Contributions to open‑source AI projects or developer tools.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed.
• 20% travel may be required to government sites.
• This position requires successfully obtaining and maintaining a Top Secret Security Clearance as a condition of employment. While the clearance may not be immediately necessary upon hire, we encourage you to initiate the application process promptly upon accepting this offer. Your ability to secure the necessary clearance is essential for fulfilling key responsibilities of the role. Should you be unable to obtain it, SpaceX reserves the right to modify or terminate your employment to align with operational needs.
• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen or national, a lawful permanent resident (green card holder), a refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, an asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State (learn more about the ITAR here).

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Pay range: AI Engineer $125,000.00 – $220,000.00 per year.

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case‑by‑case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job‑related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Base salary is just one part of the total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long‑term incentives (company stock, stock options, or long‑term cash awards), discretionary bonuses, and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, a 401(k) retirement plan, short- and long‑term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue three weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for ten or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to company policy that satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carry‑over, and use requirements of the law.

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment is governed on the basis of merit, competence, and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.