# Staff Software Engineer - AI Platform

**Company:** [Rippling](https://hotfix.jobs/companies/rippling)
**Location:** San Francisco, CA, New York, NY, Seattle, WA
**Role:** ML Engineering
**Salary:** $198k – $330k/yr
**Experience:** 8+ years
**Skills:** AI Agents, Distributed Systems, Platform Engineering, Agent Infrastructure, Observability, Self-Correcting Systems, Large-Scale Systems, Cross-Functional Leadership
**Posted:** 2026-05-13

> Leads technical architecture and cross-functional engineering pods to build scalable AI agent infrastructure for enterprise automation, enabling self-improving systems that power Rippling's AI surfaces. Requires 8+ years software engineering with platform expertise and hands-on AI experience preferred.

## Job Description

## What you will do
- Own end-to-end technical architecture for high-impact AI platform initiatives from design through production
- Lead a cross-functional pod of highly talented engineers, interacting with product, infra, and platform organizations
- Build scalable agent infrastructure that automates repetitive, high-frequency workflows across Rippling's product surface
- Design systems that are observable, self-correcting, and capable of improving over time with minimal human intervention
- Develop harness and platform capabilities that encode business logic and institutional knowledge into reliable, automated workflows
- Partner closely with Product to ensure AI-powered surfaces are trustworthy, controllable, and intuitive for end users and admins
- Mentor engineers across the org, establish best practices for AI platform development, and raise the technical bar broadly
- Track the frontier, translate model capability improvements into architectural decisions and move quickly when new approaches unlock better outcomes

## What you will need
- 8+ years of software engineering experience with a proven track record of technical leadership and org-wide impact
- Deep expertise in platform and distributed systems engineering — you've built reliable, observable, large-scale systems
- Strong hands-on coding skills, you are an active contributor in the codebase alongside your leadership responsibilities
- Experience leading complex, cross-functional technical initiatives and driving alignment across multiple teams
- Strong product instincts, you translate ambiguous problems into durable platform capabilities and partner effectively with product teams
- Clear, precise communication to diverse audiences, both written and verbal
- Comfort with ambiguity and high velocity, the roadmap evolves as the technology evolves

**Recent hands-on experience building AI agents is a plus**

## Compensation
Competitive salary + benefits + equity. US-based salary ranges aligned by location (SF/NY/Seattle tiers apply).

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**Apply:** https://hotfix.jobs/jobs/c5806994-c6a3-460b-93ff-401e80b29c92
**Canonical:** https://hotfix.jobs/jobs/c5806994-c6a3-460b-93ff-401e80b29c92