Software Development Engineer, Database (OpenSearch), AI & Data Platforms (AiDP)

The OpenSearch team at Apple is responsible for developing and managing a highly available, cloud-based search service. We seek innovative, detail-oriented engineers who can contribute to a wide range of OpenSearch components, including query parsing, indexing, cluster management, security, scalability, and new feature development. Your contributions will drive the service's performance, availability, and resilience, supporting a variety of applications and services at Apple.

Understanding of distributed computing concepts, including sharding, data replication, and fault tolerance.

Familiarity with operating system concepts such as process management and network I/O.

Comprehensive knowledge of indexing, searching and analytics concepts (e.g., text analysis, relevancy tuning, and multi-modal search).

Advanced software engineering skills with Java ecosystem expertise, object-oriented design principles, and experience in building maintainable, scalable applications.

Hands-on experience with production deployment workflows, including CI/CD pipelines, container orchestration, version control systems, and distributed systems observability.

Experience with advanced topics like autoscaling, request tracing, and performance tuning in high-throughput systems.

Strong understanding of testing methodologies and experience with debugging and profiling tools.

The role demands excellent communication skills and the ability to work closely with both the Search Engineering and DevOps teams. A customer-focused mindset is essential when delivering solutions to internal stakeholders, and collaboration with teams across different global locations is crucial. Mentorship abilities to guide and support junior engineers are also important.

Minimum Qualifications

5+ years of relevant experience in the IT industry, specifically in search engines, distributed systems

High proficiency in languages such as Java, Kotlin, or Go

Strong understanding of data structures, algorithms, and indexing techniques specific to search engines

In-depth knowledge of search engine internals, ideally with OpenSearch or similar platforms such as OpenSearch or Elasticsearch or Solr

Strong knowledge of Linux/Unix Internals, Systems/Application Design & Architecture

Expertise in identifying performance bottlenecks and implementing optimization strategies

Bachelor Science in Computer Science or related fields or equivalent work experience

Preferred Qualifications

Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities, with a keen attention to detail.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills with proven collaboration abilities

Passionate about Open-Source contributions and community engagement.

Experience in contributing to or maintaining Open-Source software projects.

Experience with public clouds (GCP or AWS)

Experience with Kubernetes

At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $171,600 and $302,200, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple's discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple's Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You'll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses - including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits.

Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.

The people here at Apple don't just craft products - they build the kind of wonder that's revolutionized entire industries! It's the diversity of those people and their ideas that encourages the innovation that runs through everything we do, from amazing technology to industry-leading environmental efforts. Join Apple, and help us leave the world better than we found it! The Data Services OpenSearch team at Apple invites passionate engineers to join our team to develop and contribute to OpenSearch, the leading Open-Source Search and Analytics suite. Our engineers develop and maintain OpenSearch solutions that powers critical observability, log analytics, and real-time monitoring for Apple's critical services across Business units. You will be joining a team of experts working on modern search technologies, distributed systems, and data analytics engineering, helping push the limits of Open-Source OpenSearch to deliver enterprise-class performance, scalability, reliability and security. This role offers the opportunity to impact the experiences of millions of users by developing scalable search, monitoring and analytics solutions for Apple's critical services.