Member of Technical Staff (General Software Engineer, Infrastructure)
About this role
Perplexity needs versatile engineers to address complex infrastructure bottlenecks that span multiple platform domains without fitting into a single team silo. The Infrastructure group builds and operates foundational systems that drive real-time search, retrieval, model serving, and agent workloads where latency and reliability dictate user experience. This generalist hire will tackle cross-cutting problems across compute, storage, networking, and deployment while setting technical direction for distributed systems.
Successful candidates possess a broad background in infrastructure and software engineering, allowing them to rapidly develop depth in unfamiliar systems and reason across different layers. Engineers who enjoy owning major production systems end to end, building shared abstractions, and resolving failure modes across platform boundaries will thrive in this environment.
What you will do
- Own cross-cutting infrastructure problems spanning compute, storage, networking, data, deployment, and reliability.
- Design, build, and operate distributed infrastructure for consumer, AI, and enterprise workloads from architecture to production.
- Identify platform gaps and create shared abstractions, automation, and tooling to improve usability and safety.
- Enhance system performance, availability, scalability, and cost-efficiency for online traffic and background jobs.
- Debug intricate production issues across service boundaries and translate findings into durable architectural fixes.
- Establish technical direction, lead high-impact cross-team programs, and define engineering standards with partners.
What you need
- Bring at least 4 years of professional software engineering experience building and operating production backend, platform, or distributed systems.
- Demonstrate a track record of owning complex production systems end to end with sustained technical impact.
- Exhibit the ability to set technical direction, lead through influence, and raise engineering standards through architecture and mentorship.
- Possess strong software engineering skills in Python or other systems and backend languages like Go, Rust, C++, or Java.
- Show meaningful experience across at least two infrastructure domains such as cloud platforms, Kubernetes, storage, databases, networking, or data systems.
- Have the capability to quickly develop depth in unfamiliar systems and drive production incidents from diagnosis to resolution.
Benefits
- $220K – $405K
- Offers Equity
Skills and tech stack
Questions candidates ask
What kind of systems does the Infrastructure team build?
The team builds and operates the foundational systems behind Perplexity's products. This includes infrastructure supporting real-time search, retrieval, model serving, and agent workloads.
Do I need to be a specialist in a single infrastructure area?
No, this role is for engineers whose experience spans multiple domains and who enjoy cross-cutting problems that do not fit neatly within a single platform team. You do not need to be a specialist in every area.
What is the compensation range for this position?
The salary ranges from $220K to $405K, and the position also offers equity.
What if my experience does not match every single qualification?
Candidates are encouraged to apply even if their experience does not match every qualification listed in the posting.