Principal Software Engineer - AI ADC

Insight Global; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 200,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Insight Global seeks a Senior Staff Engineer - AI ADC to join a global technology client, focusing on AI-driven traffic routing, intelligent load balancing, and secure, high-performance application delivery.

You will lead architecture and prototyping across data plane and control plane, collaborate with product and AI strategy teams, and help scale AI workloads with LLM integration, latency-aware routing, and observability.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in CS, Networking, or a related field.
• Deep knowledge of L4–L7 protocols (TCP/TLS/HTTP/2/3, QUIC) and GSLB strategies.
• Strong coding skills in C/C++ for data plane and Go/Python for control/ML; proficiency in performance profiling.

Responsibilities

• Lead architecture and development of AI Gateway components for intelligent routing of LLM/AI traffic.
• Design and implement LLM-aware load balancing with semantic, token, latency, and model-level insights.
• Enhance ADC and GSLB platforms to support AI workloads (token-aware rate limiting, latency-based routing, model endpoint health checks).
• Integrate with vector databases, model registries, and ML observability systems.
• Drive system-wide architecture: data plane, control plane, configuration, and distributed state management.

Skills

C/C++

Go/Python

AI/ML systems

Networking protocols

Education

MS/PhD in CS/Networking

Tools

perf

eBPF

flamegraphs

VTune

Job description

Job Description

A global technology client of Insight Global is seeking a Senior Staff Engineer - AI ADC to join their team. This company specializes in high-performance application delivery, network security, and AI-ready infrastructure solutions for enterprises, service providers, and government organizations.

This role combines deep domain expertise in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC), Server Load Balancing (SLB), DNS/GSLB, with practical experience in AI/LLM systems, to build intelligent routing, inference‑aware load balancing, and Layer‑8 contextual decision engines for AI workloads. The ideal candidate is a senior staff engineer who can drive architecture, design, prototyping, and execution—working closely with product management, platform teams, and AI strategy groups.

Key Responsibilities Include:

• Lead architecture and development of AI Gateway components for intelligent routing of LLM/AI application traffic.
• Design and implement LLM‑aware load balancing, incorporating semantic, token, latency, and model‑level insights into traffic decisions.
• Develop enhancements for ADC and GSLB platforms to support AI workloads, including:
  • Token‑aware rate limiting
  • Inference latency‑based routing
  • AI model endpoint discovery and health checks
  • Integration with vector databases, model registries, and ML observability systems
• Contribute to advanced features including Layer‑8 context‑aware routing, adaptive traffic shaping, and AI‑driven anomaly detection.
• Drive system‑wide architecture: data plane, control plane, configuration, and distributed state management.

This role is permanent and will be worked hybrid on-site in San Jose, CA. We are looking to pay between $200,000-$220,000 base salary.

Skills and Requirements

• Advanced degree in Computer Science, Networking, or related field (MS/PhD preferred)
• Deep knowledge of L4–L7 protocols (TCP/TLS/HTTP/2/3, QUIC), load balancing algorithms and GSLB strategies (DNS‑based, HTTP redirect, anycast)
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ (data plane), Go/Python (control/ML), and performance profiling (perf, eBPF, flamegraphs, VTune/nvprof)
• Hands‑on experience with AI/ML systems, including:
  • Model inference pipelines, LLM API integrations
  • Token‑level behavior and performance characteristics
  • Understanding of AI workload routing challenges (latency, caching, batching, multi‑model orchestration)

We are a company committed to creating diverse and inclusive environments where people can bring their full, authentic selves to work every day. We are an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer that believes everyone matters. Qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, marital status, national origin, ancestry, genetic factors, age, disability, protected veteran status, military or uniformed service member status, or any other status or characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations, and ordinances. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request to [e-mail].