Senior Backend Engineer

Delightree; California; Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Delightree is seeking a Senior Backend Engineer with 8-12 years of backend experience to design, build, and scale robust systems. You will integrate AI/ML capabilities into production-grade backend services and work with LLMs, generative AI, and related technologies to deliver end-to-end solutions.

You will collaborate with AI/ML engineers and product teams, own critical architectural decisions, and mentor junior engineers in a fast-paced environment in California.

Qualifications

• 8–12 years of backend software development experience.
• Strong fundamentals in backend design, scalability, and reliability.
• Experience building AI-powered features or integrating AI/ML into backend systems.
• Hands-on with at least one stack such as Python, Java, Go, Node.js, Ruby, PHP or similar.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable, high-performance backend systems and APIs.
• Build robust backend architectures across multiple stacks.
• Integrate AI/ML models and AI-powered capabilities into backend applications.
• Work with LLMs, generative AI, RAG, AI agents, or related tech.
• Design and optimize databases, data pipelines, and backend services for performance.
• Collaborate with AI/ML engineers and product teams on end-to-end solutions.
• Troubleshoot complex issues and improve performance, scalability, and security.
• Take ownership of technical decisions, code quality, and system design.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to architecture discussions.

Skills

Backend architecture

REST APIs

Microservices

Distributed systems

Programming stacks

AI-powered applications

LLMs / Generative AI

Databases & queues

Cloud & containers

CI/CD

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD tools

Job description

We are looking for an experienced Senior Backend Engineer with 8-12 years of experience in backend development and hands-on experience working with AI technologies. The ideal candidate should have strong backend engineering fundamentals, experience building scalable and reliable systems, and the ability to integrate AI/ML capabilities into real-world applications. Candidates from any backend technology stack are welcome, provided they have strong backend development experience and practical exposure to AI-based solutions.

Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable, high-performance backend systems and APIs.
• Build robust backend architectures using any programming language or technology stack.
• Integrate AI/ML models and AI-powered capabilities into backend applications.
• Work with LLMs, generative AI, RAG, AI agents, or other AI technologies as applicable.
• Design and optimize databases, data pipelines, and backend services for performance and reliability.
• Collaborate with AI/ML engineers, product managers, and other engineering teams to deliver end-to-end solutions.
• Troubleshoot complex technical issues and improve system performance, scalability, and security.
• Take ownership of technical decisions, code quality, system design, and engineering best practices.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to architecture discussions and technical planning.

Requirements:

• 8-12 years of experience in backend software development.
• Strong understanding of backend architecture, system design, REST APIs, microservices, and distributed systems.
• Hands-on experience with at least one backend technology stack, such as Python, Java, Go, Node.js, Ruby, PHP, or similar.
• Practical experience building AI-powered applications or integrating AI/ML capabilities into backend systems.
• Familiarity with one or more of the following: LLMs, generative AI, RAG, AI agents, NLP, model serving, or AI APIs.
• Experience working with relational or NoSQL databases, caching, and message queues.
• Knowledge of cloud platforms, containerization, CI/CD, and production deployment practices.
• Strong problem-solving, debugging, and technical decision-making skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and take end-to-end ownership of projects.