Software Engineer - Datacenter/Power Systems

emerald-ai; Washington, Boston (District of Columbia, MA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay + equity

Comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, and vision

Flexible location with 1 WFH day/week

Job summary

emerald-ai is seeking a Software Engineer in Washington, D.C. to design real-time telemetry pipelines that dynamically adjust workloads based on grid conditions. This role bridges IT and OT environments, shaping system architecture and owning projects end-to-end.

The ideal candidate has over 7 years of software engineering experience with a strong proficiency in Python or Rust. You will collaborate across teams to deliver sustainable solutions for AI data centers.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of software engineering experience with strong proficiency in Python and/or Rust, Go or C/C++.
• Hands-on experience building telemetry ingest pipelines or distributed systems handling high-volume, time-series data.
• Familiarity with async messaging systems like Kafka or RabbitMQ.

Responsibilities

• Build software modules interacting with datacenters and the electrical grid.
• Architect and implement data ingest pipelines for high-frequency telemetry.
• Design fault-tolerant integration layers between IT and OT systems.

Skills

Python

Rust

Go

C/C++

Kafka

RabbitMQ

Tools

Kubernetes

InfluxDB

Prometheus

Job description

About Emerald AI

We’re at a pivotal moment for AI and energy. Demand for compute is skyrocketing, but power constraints are becoming a critical bottleneck. Emerald AI sits at the intersection of these two worlds, enabling AI data centers to scale without overwhelming the grid.

Our Emerald Conductor software platform makes data centers flexible and responsive, allowing them to adjust power usage dynamically. This unlocks massive AI growth without major new infrastructure, while also strengthening the grid and supporting the expansion of renewable energy.

We’re a team of experts across AI, cloud, software, and energy—on a mission to scale AI sustainably. We’re backed by leading investors and partners including Radical Ventures and NVIDIA.

Learn more about our vision, team, and backers at https://www.emeraldai.co/.

About the Role

In this role, you will design real-time telemetry pipelines, integrate with datacenter power and compute systems, and implement control and optimization logic that dynamically adjusts workloads based on grid and infrastructure conditions. This role bridges IT and OT environments - turning raw operational data into safe, reliable, production-grade control systems.

As an early engineering hire, you’ll shape system architecture, own projects end-to-end, and work closely across teams to translate real-world constraints into scalable software.

Key Responsibilities

• Build software modules that interact with datacenters, on-site industrial power systems and the electrical grid

• Architect and implement data ingest pipelines that collect, normalize, and persist high-frequency telemetry from power meters, PDUs, UPS systems, cooling infrastructure, and compute hardware.

• Design fault-tolerant integration layers between IT systems (cloud APIs, databases, orchestration platforms) and OT systems, handling protocol translation and data model definition and mapping.

• Ensure high safety, reliability, and correctness when interacting with real-world energy assets and critical facilities - including behavior in degraded, disconnected, or split-brain network states.

• Collaborate across teams to deliver end-to-end solutions from edge device to control plane.

Minimum requirements

• 7+ years of software engineering experience, with strong proficiency in Python and/or Rust, Go or C/C++

• Hands-on experience building telemetry ingest pipelines or distributed systems that handle high-volume, time-series data.

• Familiarity with at least one async messaging system: Kafka, RabbitMQ or equivalent

• Exposure to IT or OT systems (SCADA, EMS, BMS, DCIM) and understanding of how data flows between them.

Preferred requirements

• Direct experience with industrial telemetry protocols: Modbus TCP/RTU, DNP3, OPC-UA, BACnet, or SNMP.

• Familiarity with time-series databases (InfluxDB, TimescaleDB, Prometheus) or industrial historian platforms (AVEVA PI / OSIsoft, Ignition).

• Experience with Kubernetes, containerized deployments, or HPC job scheduling in datacenter environments.

• Background in power systems, energy markets, microgrids, or datacenter infrastructure (power distribution, cooling, UPS, PDUs).

• Understanding of control system design patterns: PID loops, state machines, setpoint control, or demand response logic.

• Experience with edge compute runtimes or constrained environments where low-latency, reliable local execution matters independent of cloud connectivity.

• Familiarity with optimization algorithms or energy management strategies (load shifting, peak shaving, curtailment) a plus

What We Offer

• Make an impact. Solve the AI power bottleneck and shape how data centers scale sustainably.

• Join a world-class team of AI, cloud, software, and energy experts in a collaborative, low-ego environment.

• Build from 0 to 1. Influence strategy, GTM, org design, and customer/investor engagement from day one.

• Competitive pay + equity. Stock options let you share in the value you help create.

• Comprehensive benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and 401(k) matching.

• Flexible location. Work from D.C., Boston, or the Bay Area, with 1 WFH day/week.
  Backed by top investors, including Radical Ventures and NVIDIA.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, and any other protected ground of discrimination under applicable human rights legislation.

Emerald AI strives to respect the dignity and independence of people with disabilities and is committed to giving them the same opportunity to succeed as all other employees.

Inclusiveness is core to our culture at Emerald AI, and we strive to ensure you get the most from your interview experience. Emerald AI makes reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities. If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please reach out to the Talent team.