Lead Software Engineer

Jobtailor; California (MO); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Jobtailor is seeking a senior backend architect to design and implement distributed, AI-enabled systems. You will build scalable data pipelines, APIs, and components delivering predictive insights, with strong emphasis on reliability and observability.

You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to drive architecture, code quality, and CI/CD practices, mentoring engineers while delivering impact at scale.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of backend development experience.
• Experience building AI-powered or data-driven applications and scalable APIs.
• Proficiency in Spark, PySpark, Python or similar languages.
• Experience with production-grade distributed systems at scale.
• Experience with LangChain or LangGraph.
• Familiarity with PyTorch or TensorFlow for developing models.
• Proficiency with AI-assisted development tools like Claude, Cursor, or similar.
• Experience with GitHub, Docker, and cloud deployments (AWS/EKS).
• Strong API design, microservices, and SDLC knowledge.
• Observability platforms knowledge (Datadog, Grafana, etc.).
• Industry experience with data pipelines (Databricks, Snowflake, PySpark).

Responsibilities

• Architect, design, and implement production-grade distributed systems with real-time telemetry and AI-driven anomaly detection.
• Define patterns and scaling strategies for agentic AI systems powered by foundation models.
• Develop end-to-end data pipelines for telemetry, logs, and user signals.
• Create scalable APIs and services delivering predictive signals, explainability, and insights.
• Embed intelligence into incident response, release validation, and subscriber workflows.
• Advance observability, reliability, and developer productivity with applied AI.
• Set engineering standards for clean, tested code, reviews, CI/CD, and SDLC processes.
• Own components of production systems and mentor junior engineers.
• Collaborate with Disney+/Hulu/ESPN teams on architecture and delivery.

Skills

Backend Development

AI/ML Engineering

Spark

PySpark

Python

API Design

Microservices

LangChain

LangGraph

PyTorch

TensorFlow

GitHub

Docker

AWS/EKS

Observability

Databricks/Snowflake

Data Pipelines

Prompt Design

Model Evaluation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent

Tools

GitHub

Docker

AWS/EKS

Job description

• Architect, design, and implement production-grade distributed systems using real-time telemetry and AI-driven anomaly detection
• Define architectural patterns and scaling strategies for agentic AI systems powered by foundation models
• Develop end-to-end data and decisioning pipelines for telemetry, logs, and user signals
• Create and deploy scalable APIs and services delivering predictive signals, explainability, and insights
• Embed intelligence into incident response, release validation, and subscriber experience workflows
• Drive innovation in observability, reliability, and developer productivity through applied AI
• Define engineering standards and best practices for clean, tested code, code reviews, and CI/CD
• Own components of production systems and mentor junior engineers
• Partner with engineering, product, and platform teams across Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN

Requirements

• 7+ years of applicable backend development experience
• Experience building AI-powered or data-driven applications and scalable APIs
• Proficiency in Spark, PySpark, Python, or a similar programming language
• Experience implementing production-grade systems at scale in distributed environmentsStrong AI/ML engineering experience orchestrating foundation models such as Claude, OpenAI, or Qwen
• Experience with LangChain or LangGraph
• Familiarity with PyTorch or TensorFlow for developing, training, or fine-tuning models
• Proficiency with AI-assisted development tools such as Cursor or Claude Code
• Experience with GitHub, Docker, and cloud-native deployments using AWS/EKS
• Strong understanding of API design, microservices architecture, and SDLC workflows
• Experience with observability platforms such as Datadog, Grafana, or Conviva
• Familiarity with PySpark, Pandas, Databricks, or Snowflake
• Knowledge of prompt design, model evaluation, and foundation-model fine-tuning
• Strong analytical, technical, collaboration, and communication skills
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent experience

Demonstrates expertise in architecting and implementing scalable, production-grade distributed systems with a focus on AI-driven solutions. Proficient in developing APIs, data pipelines, and applying best practices in software engineering and observability.

Highest-signal resume keywords

• Backend Development Experience
• AI/ML Engineering Experience
• Proficiency in Spark, PySpark, Python
• Experience with API Design and Microservices Architecture
• Familiarity with Observability Platforms

ATS Optimization Keywords

Hard Skills

• Backend Development
• AI-Powered Applications
• Data-Driven Applications
• Scalable APIs
• Distributed Systems
• AI/ML Engineering
• API Design
• Microservices Architecture
• Prompt Design
• Model Evaluation

Soft Skills

• Analytical Skills
• Technical Skills
• Collaboration Skills
• Communication Skills

Industry Keywords

• Distributed Systems
• Observability
• AI-Driven Solutions
• Foundation Models
• CI/CD
• Telemetry
• Incident Response
• Release Validation
• Developer Productivity
• Data Pipelines

Tools & Technologies

• Spark
• PySpark
• Python
• LangChain
• LangGraph
• PyTorch
• TensorFlow
• GitHub
• Docker
• AWS/EKS