Job Details

Job Title: Founding Forward Deployed Engineer (AI Infrastructure)

Location: San Francisco, CA (On-site)

Job Type: Full-time

Salary: $160,000 – $250,000

Industry: Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning

About the Role

A high-growth AI startup in San Francisco is seeking a Founding Forward Deployed Engineer to lead customer-facing technical deployments and help shape the foundation of a new category in enterprise AI infrastructure.

This role is ideal for an engineer who thrives in ambiguous, high-ownership environments and wants to work at the intersection of infrastructure, product, and real customer impact. You'll work directly with early customers—ranging from major enterprises to elite AI startups—and play a critical role in deploying and optimizing real-world systems.

What You'll Do

• Deploy and maintain on-premise and VPC instances of production AI systems
• Build tools and internal infrastructure to make deployments fast, reliable, and debuggable
• Work directly with customers to diagnose edge cases and deliver meaningful solutions
• Create internal playbooks and dashboards to scale operations
• Collaborate closely with founders, product, and core engineers
• Influence product direction and infrastructure strategy based on hands-on deployment experience

What We're Looking For

• Experience deploying software in production environments
• Proficient in Python and familiar with Bash and Kubernetes
• Prior experience with enterprise or regulated environments (e.g., air-gapped, high-compliance)
• Strong ownership mindset and comfort working in a fast-paced, in-person startup environment
• Comfortable building quick tools (e.g., Streamlit, CLI scripts) for internal use

Bonus Points If You:

• Have early-stage startup or founding experience
• Stay current with ML/AI trends and technologies
• Are deeply motivated by building great products for real users

Perks & Benefits

• Competitive salary: $160k–$250k
• Daily in-office lunch
• $150/month wellness stipend
• Top-tier medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Unlimited PTO
• Commuter reimbursements
• High agency and direct access to company leadership

Location

San Francisco, CA (This is an in-person role)

If you're excited about shaping the technical backbone of enterprise AI—and want to work directly with top-tier teams on real-world deployments—apply now