Principal AI Platform Engineer — Secure, Scalable MLOps

InvestedintheMission; Hawthorne (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 285,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Medical, vision, dental coverage

401(k) retirement plan

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking a Principal Software Engineer for the Platform Team to shape the AI foundation that powers engineering and operations across the company.

You will architect scalable systems, guide frontier-model integration, and drive secure, reliable automation at planetary scale. This leadership role demands deep expertise in AI/ML platforms, distributed systems, and enterprise-grade tooling, with a strong emphasis on risk mitigation and developer velocity.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in CS or engineering or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years building and scaling production AI/ML platforms or infrastructure.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive long-term technical vision and architecture for SpaceX’s AI platform and security.
• Lead high-impact initiatives with full ownership over strategy, design, and rollout.
• Oversee onboarding of frontier models, scale compute, and optimize proxy systems for security and efficiency.
• Mentor engineers, build reusable assets, and drive AI-first workflows at scale.
• Develop risk-mitigation tools for AI code review and automated PR processes.

Skills

AI/ML platforms

Docker/Kubernetes

Security / zero-trust

MLOps

Python

Distributed systems

Leadership/mentoring

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Cloud platforms

Job description

SpaceX is seeking a Principal Software Engineer for the Platform Team to shape the AI foundation that powers engineering and operations across the company.

You will architect scalable systems, guide frontier-model integration, and drive secure, reliable automation at planetary scale. This leadership role demands deep expertise in AI/ML platforms, distributed systems, and enterprise-grade tooling, with a strong emphasis on risk mitigation and developer velocity.