Principal Software Engineer, AI-Augmented Development

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Principal Software Engineer, AI-Augmented Development based in the United States.

This is a high-impact engineering opportunity for a senior technical leader who thrives at the intersection of software architecture and AI-augmented development practices. In this role, you will drive the design and evolution of mission-critical platforms that power large-scale, customer-facing tax software used by professionals across the United States. You will operate as a hands-on individual contributor, leading complex technical initiatives from concept to production while shaping architectural direction across teams. The position emphasizes deep ownership of scalable systems, performance, reliability, and developer experience, with a strong focus on integrating AI-native workflows into everyday engineering practice. You will collaborate closely with product, design, infrastructure, and engineering leadership to solve ambiguous, cross-functional problems and deliver durable, high-quality solutions. This role is ideal for an experienced engineer who combines strong coding ability, architectural thinking, and a forward-looking approach to AI-driven software development.

• Lead architecture, design, and delivery of critical platform capabilities across large-scale, customer-facing applications.
• Define and evolve engineering standards to ensure consistency, scalability, security, and maintainability across systems and services.
• Partner with product, design, and business stakeholders to translate complex problems into robust, scalable technical solutions.
• Drive modernization initiatives, including system refactoring, performance optimization, and reduction of technical debt.
• Identify and adopt emerging technologies, including AI-assisted development tools, to improve engineering productivity and product outcomes.
• Provide technical leadership across multiple teams, influencing architecture and delivery without formal management authority.
• Act as a hands-on contributor by building production-grade code, prototyping solutions, and debugging complex systems.
• Lead cross-functional initiatives spanning engineering, product, DevOps, security, QA, and infrastructure teams.
• Improve developer experience by simplifying systems, optimizing workflows, and enhancing tooling and automation.
• Ensure all technical solutions meet high standards for reliability, observability, security, and operational readiness.
• Mentor engineers and provide guidance on architecture, design patterns, and best practices.
• Evaluate trade-offs and make pragmatic technical decisions aligned with long-term platform strategy.

Requirements

• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience building and scaling complex systems.
• Proven track record of leading large-scale, cross-team technical initiatives in production environments.
• Strong hands-on coding ability with consistent delivery of production-grade software.
• Deep expertise in modern software architecture, including distributed systems, APIs, event-driven systems, and cloud-native design.
• Experience working with AWS, Kubernetes, and large-scale production infrastructure.
• Demonstrated ability to modernize legacy systems while maintaining operational stability.
• Strong understanding of CI/CD pipelines, observability, security, and system reliability practices.
• Proven experience using AI-assisted development tools, coding agents, and agentic workflows in real-world engineering environments.
• Ability to quickly understand unfamiliar systems and resolve complex technical problems across multiple domains.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to influence both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience collaborating across engineering, product, design, QA, and business teams.
• Strong technical judgment with the ability to evaluate trade-offs and drive pragmatic decisions.
• Comfortable operating in ambiguous environments and defining clarity through execution.
• Experience mentoring and elevating other engineers through technical leadership and feedback.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation aligned with senior-level engineering expertise.
• Remote work flexibility across the United States.
• Opportunity to work on large-scale, high-impact customer-facing platforms.
• Access to modern AI tools and technologies to accelerate engineering productivity.
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage.
• Retirement savings plan with employer contributions.
• Paid time off and holiday programs.
• Inclusive and collaborative engineering culture focused on continuous learning.
• Opportunities for technical leadership and influence without formal management responsibilities.
• Exposure to cutting-edge AI-augmented development practices and modern engineering workflows.
• Strong emphasis on work-life balance and long-term career growth.