Senior Software Engineer, Core Engineering

Role

You will be part of a core engineering team responsible for designing and building large-scale backend services, high-performance data processing pipelines, and robust storage systems. You bring deep expertise in Python, distributed systems, relational/NoSQL databases, and backend service architectures. You are experienced in building highly available services, optimizing data access patterns, and designing systems that balance performance, reliability, and cost. You can clearly articulate architectural trade-offs, evaluate multiple design approaches, and deliver clean, scalable solutions.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain scalable, robust, and high-performance backend services using Python.

• Architect data-intensive systems that ingest, transform, and serve large structured and unstructured datasets in (near) real time.

• Develop APIs, microservices, workflow pipelines, and internal tools that support mission-critical platform components.

• Own the design and optimization of SQL and NoSQL data schemas, data access patterns, indexing strategies, and performance tuning.

• Recommend and implement improvements to service reliability, efficiency, observability, and cost optimization.

• Design and integrate agentic workflows and AI-driven automation into backend systems, enabling autonomous task orchestration and intelligent system behavior.

• Collaborate with product, data, and revenue teams to build new customer-facing features and internal data capabilities.

• Mentor engineers, conduct code reviews, and guide the team toward engineering excellence.

Qualifications

• BS/MS in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience

• 8+ years of experience in software engineering with increasing technical responsibilities

• 5+ years of hands-on Python development, with proven experience building production backend systems.

• Strong expertise in distributed backend architectures, microservices, and event-driven systems

• Experience with SQL databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, or similar) including query optimization, schema design, and scalability.

• Hands-on experience with NoSQL technologies, such as Elasticsearch, MongoDB, Redis, or similar.

• Experience building and deploying solutions on public cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure).

• Familiarity with workflow orchestration tools such as Prefect, serverless compute, Step Functions, or similar.

• Hands-on experience with Dask for parallel computing, distributed data processing, or scaling Python workloads.

• Knowledge of DevOps, CI/CD, containers (Docker/Kubernetes), security best practices, and automated testing.

• Excellent debugging skills and ability to understand, refactor, and optimize other engineers’ code.

• Strong communication skills and ability to document and defend architectural decisions.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with one or more generative AI libraries such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, LangChain, LlamaIndex, Hugging Face Transformers, or similar frameworks

• Experience using LLMs and embedding providers programmatically, including integrating model/embedding APIs into backend systems

• Hands-on Experience with web technologies or backend frameworks such as FastAPI, Node.js

Work Environment

• Location: This position is Onsite. This role is based at our Bellevue, WA office location, and employees are expected to work on-site during regular business hours.

Compensation

• The compensation for this position will be competitive and commensurate with experience. The estimated salary range for this role is 160,000 -200,000 USD.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to work at the forefront of AI technology 

• Collaborative and innovative work environment 

• Competitive salary and benefits package 

• Professional development and growth opportunities 

• Chance to make a significant impact on the company's success 

Equal Employment Opportunity

• ProRata is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All employment decisions are made based on qualifications, merit, and business needs.  

California Specific Notices

• At-Will Employment: Employment at ProrataAI is at-will. This means that either the employee or the employer may terminate employment at any time, with or without cause or prior notice. 

• Salary Disclosure: In compliance with California law, salary information is provided to ensure transparency and fairness. 

• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA): ProrataAI complies with the CCPA. Personal information collected during the recruitment process will be used for employment purposes only.  

*This open position is not eligible for Company sponsorship of a visa that would require a new H-1B visa petition that is subject to the $100,000 payment requirement announced in the Presidential Proclamation titled “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” dated September 19, 2025 (or any extensions or modifications of the Proclamation).