Software Engineer - MacOS

About xAI

xAI’s mission is to create AI systems that can accurately understand the universe and aid humanity in its pursuit of knowledge.

Our team is small, highly motivated, and focused on engineering excellence. This organization is for individuals who appreciate challenging themselves and thrive on curiosity.

We operate with a flat organizational structure. All employees are expected to be hands-on and to contribute directly to the company’s mission. Leadership is given to those who show initiative and consistently deliver excellence. Work ethic and strong prioritization skills are important.

All engineers and researchers are expected to have strong communication skills. They should be able to concisely and accurately share knowledge with their teammates.

About the Role

We’re seeking exceptionally talented engineers to build high-performance Mac applications that deliver seamless and intuitive user experiences. You’ll play a large role on a small team pushing the boundaries of what is possible with cutting-edge Swift-based development, with a particular focus on macOS-native features and user interfaces.

• Develop and optimize Swift-based Mac applications at scale.


• Build infrastructure for large-scale data pipelines, asset management, and UI prototyping.


• Develop and implement quantitative evaluations for application performance, usability, and reliability.


• Optimization and code refinement for real-time responsiveness.


• Develop and implement strategies for handling complex, long-running tasks in macOS environments.


• Maintain a deep focus on building a lovable user experience everywhere from prototyping to deployment.

Additionally, experience in any of the following may set you apart

• A proven track record of building SOTA Mac applications end to end alone or as part of small teams


• Shipping high-performance desktop applications across a variety of devices and platforms


• Track record of releases, publications, and/or open source projects related to SwiftUI, AppKit, and macOS


• Strong systems and engineering skills in development frameworks like Swift, Rust, and adjacent

Who You Are:

• Technically Exceptional : Engineering is your craft and you operate at the very highest level regardless of the stack.


• Impatient: You’re excited about the mission of your work, and treat every project like you wish it had been completed yesterday.


• Perfectionist: You take pride in crafting the most delightful experiences for customers, and are determined to polish every last splinter from the product.


• High Agency : You don’t wait for direction, and are capable of completing large projects end to end on your own.


• Product Minded : You are excited to research and build applications in order to deliver exceptional, newly enabled product experiences to customers at scale.

Location
We work out of xAI’s Palo Alto office and prefer that candidates are able to relocate to the Bay Area if necessary.

Tech Stack

• Swift (required)


• AppKit and macOS APIs (e.g., Core Data, Core Animation) (required)


• SwiftUI (required)


• Xcode


• Objective-C


• Cloud platforms or on-prem environments

Interview Process

After submitting your application, the team reviews your CV and statement of exceptional work. If your application passes this stage, you will be invited to a 15 minute interview (“phone interview”) during which a member of our team will ask some basic questions. If you clear the initial phone interview, you will enter the main process, which consists of 4 technical interviews:

• One-on-one research discussion & coding interviews (three meetings total)


• Project deep-dive: Present your past exceptional work and your vision with xAI to a small audience.

Our goal is to finish the main process within one week. All interviews will be conducted via Google Meet.

Annual Salary Range

$180,000 - $440,000 USD

xAI is an equal opportunity employer and does not unlawfully discriminate based on race, color, religion, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, disability, medical conditions, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other applicable legally protected characteristics.

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:

xAI reasonably believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of a conditional offer of employment:

• Access to information technology systems and confidential information, including proprietary and trade secret information, and/or user data;


• Interacting with internal and/or external clients and colleagues; and


• Exercising sound judgment.