Software Engineer, Product

About the company Our client is building the next-generation data platform designed for AI/ML workloads. Our open-source distributed data engine, Daft, is already deployed at scale, running on over 800K CPU cores daily. Backed by Y Combinator, Caffeinated Capital, and leading Silicon Valley investors, we are redefining how AI engineers and data scientists work with large-scale data. Our founding team comes from top tech firms such as Tesla, Anyscale, and Lyft, bringing deep expertise in AI, distributed computing, and data infrastructure.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Core Infrastructure Development: Architect and optimize the AI/ML infrastructure layer of Daft to support high-throughput, distributed data processing.
• High-Performance Computing: Implement efficient scheduling, execution engines, and memory management for AI workloads.
• Cloud & Distributed Systems: Design and scale cloud-native distributed systems that integrate seamlessly with AWS, Ray, and modern data lakes.
• AI/ML Optimization: Collaborate with research teams to fine-tune AI data pipelines, model training, and inference workloads.
• Systems-Level Engineering: Work with Rust, C++, or similar low-level programming languages to optimize performance-critical components.
• Early-Stage Startup Execution: Drive technical initiatives in a fast-paced, high-autonomy environment, shaping the product roadmap.

Job Requirements

• Experience: 4+ years in high-performance computing, ML/AI infrastructure, or distributed systems development.
• Deep Technical Expertise:
• Strong background in data-intensive applications, parallel computing, or GPU/accelerator optimization.
• Proficiency in Python (NumPy, PyTorch, TensorFlow) and familiarity with Rust, C++, or Go.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP) and distributed computing frameworks (Ray, Spark, Dask, or Kubernetes).
• AI/ML Background: Prior work on data pipelines, model serving, or optimizing training/inference workflows.
• Startup & Product Experience: Hands-on experience shipping production software at a startup or early-stage company (<50 employees preferred).
• Educational Background: CS degree from a top-30 university (MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, CMU, UIUC, Caltech, Georgia Tech, Princeton, etc.) is a strong plus.
• Bonus Skills:
• Open-source contributions, especially in ML/AI/data infrastructure.
• Technical blogging, public speaking, or community engagement in AI/ML.
• Entrepreneurial experience or a strong ownership mindset.