Core Engineer - Software / Applied AI

Core Engineer – Software / Applied AI Senior & Staff Location: Hybrid – Denver, CO Employment Type: Full-time The Opportunity Our client is seeking a Core Engineer focused on Software / Applied AI to build production-grade AI capabilities that make a next-generation edge platform scalable, reliable, and repeatable. In this role, you will own critical components of a private AI platform, including agentic and multi-agent systems, repeatable AI architectures, evaluation and reliability frameworks, and platform capabilities such as automated fine-tuning and runtime optimization. This work operates within clearly defined industrial production boundaries — AI behavior must be measurable, controlled, and fully reversible before reaching production. You will partner closely with data and infrastructure teams to translate real-world requirements into scalable platform capabilities. This is a hands-on, high-ownership role ideal for engineers who want to build the infrastructure that makes real-world AI deployments safe and dependable. What You’ll Do Build and operate production AI capabilities including: Agentic and multi-agent workflows Tool calling and orchestration Repeatable AI patterns that scale Design and implement evaluation, monitoring, and quality systems to ensure AI reliability and continuous improvement Develop platform capabilities for private AI, including: Automated fine-tuning workflows Model and runtime optimization Inference performance improvements under real-world constraints Implement safety and operational controls such as: Policy constraints Approval workflows Auditability Rollback mechanisms Build pragmatic APIs and interfaces to integrate AI capabilities across platform services Improve developer velocity through automation and AI-assisted tooling Partner with data and infrastructure teams to ensure high-quality context reaches inference and agent workflows For senior levels: mentor engineers, review designs, and raise the technical bar What Success Looks Like First 3 months Deliver at least one production AI capability that improves reliability, performance, or usability Establish evaluation and rollback models for an AI workflow operating within industrial constraints Become a trusted owner for key AI platform components First year Own major components of the private AI platform end-to-end Ship repeatable AI structures that accelerate adoption across deployments Drive platform evolution through measurable, production-grounded improvements Who You Are 6+ years building and operating production software systems Experience shipping AI-enabled platforms or agentic systems strongly preferred Strong distributed systems, performance, and reliability fundamentals Experience owning production services end-to-end (e.g., Docker/Kubernetes, REST/gRPC APIs, controlled rollouts) Experience building evaluation frameworks, monitoring, and AI safety/guardrail systems Strong engineering craft with clean, well-documented implementations Proficiency in Python and/or TypeScript/Go and modern service frameworks (e.g., FastAPI-style) Comfortable navigating ambiguity and real-world constraints (latency, cost, GPU utilization, reliability) Clear communicator and strong cross-functional collaborator Ownership mindset focused on outcomes Unique Experience Valued Production experience with agentic or multi-agent systems and orchestration layers Experience designing reusable AI patterns (tool calling, memory/state, policy constraints, guardrails) Experience building fine-tuning pipelines and runtime optimization for private AI deployments Background in AI monitoring and quality systems enabling safe rollback and continuous improvement Strong systems intuition across data, infrastructure, and security constraints Familiarity with event/data systems (e.g., Kafka), operational stores (e.g., Postgres or time-series DBs), and secure deployment patterns Benefits & Compensation Base salary range: Senior: $130,000–$155,000 Staff: $160,000–$185,000 Meaningful early-stage equity participation Health, dental, and vision coverage 401(k) with company match Flexible PTO Paid parental leave Commuter benefits Relocation and visa support for eligible candidates Why This Opportunity Stands Out High-ownership startup environment with immediate impact Work at the frontier of applied AI, edge computing, and distributed systems Exposure to real-world AI deployment challenges in demanding environments Strong AI-native engineering culture Opportunity to shape foundational platform capabilities Our client is an equal opportunity employer committed to building an inclusive, merit-based organization and does not discriminate on any legally protected status.