> Markdown version of [/jobs/ext/2299491-principal-data-platform-engineer](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/jobs/ext/2299491-principal-data-platform-engineer). Every page supports `.md` or `Accept: text/markdown`. Links point to the HTML versions so they work for humans too. Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Principal Data Platform Engineer - **Company:** Salesforce Inc. - **Location:** San Francisco, CA, United States - **Salary:** $197,300.0 - $313,700.0 - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Java (Programming Language), Artificial Intelligence, Airflow, Amazon Web Services, Cloud Computing, Code Review, Data Infrastructure, Python (Programming Language), OAuth, OpenID, DataOps, Salesforce.Com, Large Language Models, Snowflake, Backend, Event Driven Architecture, Build Management, Infrastructure Automation Frameworks, Virtual Agents, Api Design, Api Management - **Published:** August 29, 2026 - **Apply:** https://salesforce.wd12.myworkdayjobs.com/External_Career_Site/job/California---San-Francisco/Principal-Data-Platform-Engineer_JR354027 ## About the Role * You have 15+ years of experience designing, building, and operating production backend services at scale, with expert-level Python, Go, or Java. * You have hands-on experience building and deploying production AI/LLM applications, including RAG pipelines and tool-calling agents - not just research or prototypes. * You have deep experience with cloud infrastructure (AWS), infrastructure as code, and CI/CD pipelines for containerized services. * You have strong knowledge of identity and security practices, including OAuth/OIDC, least-privilege access, and multi-tenant isolation. * A related technical degree required., * You have hands-on experience with dbt, Airflow, Snowflake, or Iceberg-based lakehouse architectures. * You've worked with Model Context Protocol (MCP) or built conversational/agentic tools on a platform like Slack. * You have experience layering AI capabilities into existing production systems. * You have experience with data observability or data-quality/governance tooling. ## Description The Developer Experience team builds the tooling, paved paths, and automation that let Salesforce's data teams ship discoverable, governed, and consumable data products quickly and safely. As our Principal Data Platform Engineer, based in San Francisco, you'll design and build the backend services, data-platform automation, and AI agent systems that power our Snowflake-based lakehouse - setting technical direction for how the rest of the org builds on top of it. What You'll Actually Be Doing * Design and build backend services and event-driven systems that support our data platform, including AI agent runtimes and API integrations. * Build retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) pipelines and tool-calling AI agents that make our data products and catalog easier to discover, query, and trust. * Extend the platform's automation, command-line tooling, and shared utilities that data teams rely on as their day-to-day interface to the platform. * Set technical direction through system and API design, code review, and mentoring, while owning service reliability, delivery, and cost efficiency. ## Related Videos - [Keeping applications secure by evolving OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100152-keeping-applications-secure-by-evolving-oauth-2-0-and-openid-connect) - [From Messy Queries to Scalable Systems - How Data Engineering actually works](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100203-from-messy-queries-to-scalable-systems-how-data-engineering-actually-works) - [Alibaba Big Data and Machine Learning Technology](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/37-alibaba-big-data-and-machine-learning-technology) - [Get started with securing your cloud-native Java microservices applications](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/123-get-started-with-securing-your-cloud-native-java-microservices-applications) - [Developer Experience, Platform Engineering and AI powered Apps](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/990-developer-experience-platform-engineering-and-ai-powered-apps) - [AI Model Management Life Circles: ML Ops For Generative AI Models From Research to Deployment](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1152-ai-model-management-life-circles-ml-ops-for-generative-ai-models-from-research-to-deployment) ## Related Articles - [Highest Paying Tech Companies for Developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/220-highest-paying-tech-companies-for-developers) - [How to Become an AI Engineer](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/331-how-to-become-an-ai-engineer) - [From Prototype to Production: Build AI Agents with This Free 4-Course Learning Path](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/655-from-prototype-to-production-build-ai-agents-with-this-free-4-course-learning-path) - [MLOps And AI Driven Development](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/82-mlops-and-ai-driven-development) - [Making Data Warehouses Fast: A Developer’s Story](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/107-making-data-warehouses-fast-a-developer-s-story) - [MLOps – What’s the deal behind it?](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/125-mlops-what-s-the-deal-behind-it)