Software Engineer, Frontier AI Infrastructure

$184,000spanspan class="divider"-spanspan$259,440 USDspandivdivdiv class="pay-input"div class="title"The base salary range for this full-time position in the locations of Hawaii, Washington DC, Texas, Colorado is:divdiv class="pay-range"span$165,600spansp United States, Missouri, St. Louis Jun 26, 2026

Scale AI is seeking a highly skilled and motivated Software Engineer, Frontier AI Infrastructureto join our dynamic Public Sector Engineering team. As a part of this team, you will own the model inference layer - enabling state of the art models, debugging the latest AI tools, managing networking, debugging latency, and tracking pricing/usage metrics for AI models. You will lead technical discussions on the frontlines with cloud vendors and customers to deliver on critical contracts and to debug platform issues. You will also work upstream with Product to understand features before they break, moving us from "infra-only debugging" to proactive integration testing.

You will:

• Design and implement secure scalable backend systems for Public Sector customers, leveraging Scale's modern and cloud-native AI infrastructure.
• Own services or systems and define their long-term health goals, while also improving the health of surrounding components
• Re-architect the stack to run in compliant or restrictive environments. This requires designing swappable components (auth, storage, logging) to meet government/security mandates without breaking the product.
• You will work with Product to build integration tests that catch issues early, shifting the focus from "infra-only debugging" to preventing failures upstream.
• Participate actively in customer engagements, working closely with stakeholders to understand requirements and deliver innovative solutions.
• Contribute to the platform roadmap and product strategy for Scale AI's Public Sector business, playing a key role in shaping the future direction of our offerings.

Must have:

• At least an active secret clearance and the ability & willingness to up level to TS/SCI with CI Poly. This is a requirement and candidates will not be considered who do not hold at least a secret clearance

• Full Stack Development: Proficiency in both front-end and back-end development, including experience with modern web development frameworks, programming languages, and databases. Experience with developing & delivering software to air-gapped & isolated environments is a plus.
• Cloud-Native Technologies: Understanding of containerization (e.g., Docker) and container orchestration (e.g., Kubernetes) is desired. Familiarity with cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP) and experience in developing and deploying applications in a cloud-native environment.
• Security Focused: Experience with Federal Compliance frameworks, and requirements(e.g, Cloud SRG, FedRAMP, STIG Benchmarks, etc). Experience developing software & technical solutions that meet strict security & regulatory compliance requirements.
• Problem Solving: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to understand complex challenges and devise effective solutions. Ability to think critically, identify root causes, and propose innovative approaches to overcome technical obstacles.
• Collaboration and Communication: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to effectively collaborate with cross-functional teams, stakeholders, and customers. Ability to clearly articulate technical concepts to non-technical audiences and foster a collaborative work environment.
• Adaptability and Learning Agility: Willingness to embrace new technologies, learn new skills, and adapt to evolving project requirements. Ability to quickly grasp and apply new concepts and stay up-to-date with emerging trends in software engineering.
• Must be able to support work 3-4 days a week from the DC, SF, NYC, or STL office.

Compensation packages at Scale for eligible roles include base salary, equity, and benefits. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position and may be inclusive of several career levels at Scale; it will be determined during the interview process based on work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, qualifications, interview performance, and relevant education or training. Scale employees in eligible roles are also granted equity based compensation, subject to Board of Director approval. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process, and confirm whether the hired role will be eligible for equity grant. You'll also receive benefits including, but not limited to: comprehensive health, dental and vision coverage, retirement benefits, a learning and development stipend, and generous PTO. Additionally, this role may be eligible for additional benefits such as a commuter stipend.

At Scale, our mission is to develop reliable AI systems for the world's most important decisions. Our products provide the high-quality data and full-stack technologies that power the world's leading models, and help enterprises and governments build, deploy, and oversee AI applications that deliver real impact. We work closely with industry leaders like Meta, Ernst & Young, Mayo Clinic, Time Inc., the Government of Qatar, and U.S. government agencies including the Army and Air Force. We are expanding our team to accelerate the development of AI applications.