Staff Software Engineer, Backend (Infrastructure)

otterai; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Otter.ai in Seattle, WA is seeking a Staff Software Engineer, Backend (Infrastructure) to lead the design and operation of scalable web services and AI-enabled infrastructure that power enterprise products. You will partner with AI researchers and product teams to deliver robust, high-performance backend systems, mentor engineers, and drive best-practices across the stack.

You will influence architecture, own critical components, and help scale Otter.ai's AI-driven capabilities for diverse

Qualifications

• 10+ years building and architecting large-scale web services.
• Deep knowledge of databases and distributed systems.
• Expert Python and systems programming skills.
• Experience with Django and ML/infrastructure integration.
• Experience deploying services on AWS for ML workloads.
• Strong communicator capable of leading cross-team initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the architecture of scalable backend solutions.
• Build and optimize backend services that integrate with AI models.
• Design robust business logic with web frameworks and databases.
• Write clean, reusable code and promote engineering best practices.
• Collaborate with AI teams to streamline data pipelines and deployment.
• Influence roadmaps and communicate technical direction to stakeholders.

Skills

Python

Go/Java/C++

Distributed systems

Databases

Django

AWS

Code quality

Communication

AI workflows

Education

Bachelor's/Master's/PhD in CS or related

Tools

MySQL

Vitess

Kafka

Cassandra

Redis

Elasticsearch

Job description

The Opportunity

Are you an experienced Staff Software Engineer, Backend (Infrastructure) looking to make a significant impact at the intersection of scalable web services and cutting‑edge AI technologies? We're seeking a talented engineer to lead the development, deployment, and management of web services and infrastructure that empower AI‑driven products and initiatives. As part of our dynamic engineering team, you'll collaborate closely with AI researchers, product managers, and technologists to deliver innovative solutions that transform the experiences of end‑user professionals and enterprise clients across diverse industries.

Your Impact

• Define and drive the architecture of scalable solutions utilizing technologies like MySQL, Vitess, Kafka, Cassandra, Redis, and big data platforms - shaping foundational systems that support sophisticated AI applications and workflows across the organization.


• Leverage your deep expertise in Python to build and enhance backend systems that seamlessly integrate with machine learning and AI models, while establishing engineering best practices for the broader team.


• Design and implement robust business logic using web frameworks such as Django, ensuring compatibility with AI components and integration with databases - and influence how these patterns are adopted at scale.


• Write reusable, efficient, and maintainable code that underpins our high‑performance web services and supports real‑time AI analytics, setting the bar for code quality across teams.


• Partner with AI teams to streamline data pipelines, optimize model deployment, and ensure backend systems effectively support AI‑based product features - often driving alignment across multiple teams simultaneously.


• Serve as a key technical voice with stakeholders across the organization, translating complex infrastructure strategies into clear direction and influencing roadmaps related to AI‑enabled infrastructure.

We're Looking for Someone Who

• Holds a Bachelor's, Master's, or Ph.D. in Computer Science or a related field.


• Demonstrates strong expertise in databases, distributed systems, backend performance optimization, and familiarity with backend requirements for machine learning infrastructure.


• Demonstrates a solid understanding of database internals, transactions, indexing, and experience in schema design optimized for AI data workloads.


• Has 10+ years of experience in developing and architecting large‑scale web services, preferably with exposure to supporting AI systems.


• Possesses expert proficiency in Python or other programming languages such as Go, Java, or C++.


• Has extensive experience with web frameworks like Django and is comfortable integrating systems with technologies such as MySQL, Redis, Elasticsearch, Kafka, and Cassandra, particularly in support of AI workflows.


• Has hands‑on experience deploying and managing services on AWS, particularly those interfacing with machine learning platforms.


• Is driven by ownership and passionate about delivering impactful solutions from conception to deployment, especially in collaborative environments with AI‑focused teams.


• Brings substantial production server experience or equivalent backend expertise to the table.


• Has excellent communication skills, a genuine curiosity for technology, and meticulous attention to detail.

Nice to haves

• Familiarity with HTTP, networking principles, and API design patterns beneficial to AI integrations.


• Experience with operating systems, particularly Linux, and an understanding of their interactions with AI applications and services.

About Otter.ai

We are in the business of shaping the future of work. Our mission is to make conversations more valuable.

With over 1B meetings transcribed, Otter.ai is the world's leading tool for meeting transcription, summarization, and collaboration. Using artificial intelligence, Otter generates real‑time automated meeting notes, summaries, and other insights from in‑person and virtual meetings - turning meetings into accessible, collaborative, and actionable data that can be shared across teams and organizations. The company is backed by early investors in Google, DeepMind, Zoom, and Tesla.

Accessibility & Accommodations

Otter.ai is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our hiring process. If you need assistance or an accommodation during any stage of the recruitment process, please contact [e-mail] at least 3 business days before your interview.

*Otter.ai does not accept unsolicited resumes from 3rd party recruitment agencies without a written agreement in place for permanent placements. Any resume or other candidate information submitted outside of established candidate submission guidelines (including