Automation Engineer

Sierra Ventures; United States; Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 192,000; Full time

Job summary

Spectro Cloud is seeking an AI Automation Engineer to design, build, and maintain automation for AI workflows across cloud and on-prem environments. You will lead PoCs, run AI Office Hours, and work with risk and legal to set guardrails for new tools.

Strong cloud, Kubernetes, and Terraform experience are essential for this role. Ideal candidates will handle cross‑functional collaborations, communicate clearly, and own initiatives from concept to production.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or advanced degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 4+ years of experience as a Software Engineer, SRE, ML Engineer, Solutions Architect, or similar technical role.
• 4+ years of experience maintaining and building production applications.
• Broad knowledge across AI topics including agent-based systems, model tuning, deployment, MCP server development.
• Proficiency in Python, Go, or JavaScript/TypeScript (Go preferred).
• Experience with CI/CD and testing for production solutions.
• Project management experience leading proofs-of-concept and rollouts.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; able to explain concepts to engineers and non-engineers.
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code, preferably Terraform.
• Experience with public clouds and on-prem infrastructure.
• Deep understanding of containers and Kubernetes.
• Curious, self-starter with ownership.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain automation solutions to promote AI adoption across the company.
• Lead proof-of-concept initiatives and participate in AI Office Hours to advise colleagues.
• Collaborate with risk, compliance, and legal to define guardrails for product/tool rollouts.
• Explain technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Work across cloud and bare-metal infrastructure to deploy and operate AI solutions.
• Propose and implement production-ready AI tooling in collaboration with teams.

Skills

Software Engineering

SRE

ML Engineering

Solutions Architecture

Python

Go

JavaScript/TypeScript

CI/CD

Terraform

AWS/Azure/GCP

Kubernetes

Containers

Communication

Project Management

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Advanced Degree

Tools

Terraform

Kubernetes

AWS

Azure

GCP

On-Prem

Job description

Who We Are

Spectro Cloud is the Kubernetes and AI infrastructure platform behind some of the most demanding AI environments in the world. Our PaletteAI platform, AI Inference Launchpad, and Instinct Coder solutions let operators stand up production‑grade AI clusters — training, fine‑tuning, and inference — on any GPU, in any data center, at any scale. NeoClouds and specialty GPU cloud providers are one of the fastest‑growing segments in the AI economy, and Spectro Cloud is the platform layer they trust to bring differentiated, multi‑tenant, GPU‑native services to market.

About the Job

As an AI Automation Engineer, you will be part of internal efforts to advance AI adoption across the company. You will design, build, and maintain internally focused solutions that help promote agentic workflows and automations that improve employee productivity. This role will require you to wear different hats; one moment you are building a technical solution, and the next you may be engaging with risk, compliance, and legal to help define guardrails for a product or tool rollout. You will lead proof‑of‑concept initiatives, engage with employees during AI Office Hours to provide advice, and work with our internal partners to establish AI processes and guardrails. You must be comfortable teaching and explaining ideas to non‑technical audiences. You are expected to have experience with various AI/ML workflows and AI development practices, primarily to advise, but also to shape the future of our products. We are an infrastructure‑focused software company, so you are expected to have a strong understanding of infrastructure, spanning cloud and bare‑metal environments. You should be comfortable creating automation solutions, with and without AI, that help us promote effective AI usage within the company. Experience deploying and managing applications in production will help you propose and build sustainable solutions.

Minimum Qualifications

We don’t expect the ideal candidate to check every box, but the items below are things we look for when reviewing candidates. Do not let this discourage you from applying.

• Bachelor's Degree or an Advanced Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a similar field.
• 4+ years of experience as a Software Engineer, SRE, ML Engineer, Solutions Architect, or similar technical role is required
• 4+ years of experience maintaining and building production applications.
• Possesses a broad knowledge and experience across AI topics, including agent‑based systems, model tuning, model deployment, MCP server development, and more.
• Highly proficient with at least one of the following programming languages: Python, Go, or JavaScript/TypeScript (We prefer Go)
• Experience with application testing and continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD). This will come into play as you build and maintain solutions the AI team will own and support.
• Project management experience. You are capable of leading and driving projects, such as proof‑of‑concept and the rollout of a new technical solution organization‑wide.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral. You will be expected to participate and lead office hours. You must be able to articulate technical concepts to engineers, non‑engineers, and executives.
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code, preferably Terraform.
• Experience with public cloud providers (AWS, Azure, GCP, Oracle), and on‑prem infrastructure.
• Deep understanding of containers and how container orchestration systems work, such as Kubernetes.
• Displays a passion for learning and exploring new technologies
• A self‑starter with a strong sense of ownership
• Excellent problem‑solving and analytical skills, with a proactive approach to challenges

The Hiring Process

Your time is valuable, so we want to ensure we respect your time and the effort you put into the hiring process. The interview process is divided into four sections: a screening interview, a technical interview, and a culture and team fit interview.

• Screening Interview—This is a thirty‑minute interview during which we verify whether we are a good fit for each other. We’ll ask questions to learn more about your career experience.
• Technical Interview - an hour interview where we verify your technical skills and knowledge. A take‑home assignment is part of the interview and will be reviewed during the interview.
• Culture/Team Interview—This is a thirty‑minute interview. The questions here focus on your experience working in a team setting. Other questions check for organizational core values and culture fit.

Location

This role can be worked from San Jose, CA or Austin, TX. We operate on a hybrid working model and are in the office 3 times a week, with optional WFH for the remainder of the week. Remote candidates can be considered, but preference will be given to individuals based in San Jose, CA or Austin, TX. The total on‑target earnings range for this role is between $160,000-192,000/year + Equity. Compensation will be based on experience and geographic market location. Work Authorization/Visa: Applicants are required to be eligible to lawfully work in the U.S. immediately; employer is unable to sponsor applicants for U.S. work authorization for this opportunity.