Principal Software Engineer

Principal Software Engineer

Come be a part of Red Hat's charge to democratize AI with open source!

Red Hat's Global Engineering Team is looking for a Principal Software Engineer to join our newly formed AI Engineering organization.

This role will be located within the AI Innovation team in Red Hat AI Engineering, which leads frontier AI research in Red Hat and drives innovation for Red Hat's AI Portfolio.

The AI Innovation Team conducts customer- and science-driven research and productizes outcomes via open-source software. Our focus is on bridging the gap between cutting-edge research and production by productizing research papers (often featured in top AI conferences like NeurIPS, ICLR and ICML) onto the Red Hat AI platform. We operate as an open organization where contributions are valued and expected from all levels.

You will serve as a technical bridge between AI algorithms and the Red Hat AI platform. This is not just an execution role; it is a technical leadership position where you will participate in the development and implementation of novel algorithms alongside the research community (internal and external).

We are seeking a candidate with strong backend systems expertise to build the "plumbing" and tooling that enables both local experimental and large-scale AI/ML workflows. You will work across multiple squads, contributing to sprint planning, prioritization, and direct development. You will be expected to leverage AI tools in your daily workflow to maximize efficiency and help convert state-of-the-art research outputs into robust Red Hat AI products.

Team & Engineering Responsibilities

• Contribute high-quality, maintainable code to open-source AI/ML projects and internal tooling.

• Develop and optimize scalable toolkits for synthetic data generation, model training, and inference-time scaling.

• Document system designs, API specifications, and model performance metrics to ensure transparency and reproducibility.

• Evaluate existing product offerings and iterate on improvements based on telemetry metrics and direct user feedback.

• Proficiently leverage AI-assisted development tools to accelerate coding, testing, and documentation workflows.

Leadership & Strategic Responsibilities

• Serve as the Technical Lead for your assigned components, defining technical standards and providing architectural guidance to the wider team.

• Influence the architectural direction of the Red Hat AI platform to ensure readiness for cutting-edge ML algorithms.

• Work across multiple squads to align technical priorities, contribute to sprint planning, and translate high-level requirements into actionable engineering tasks.

• Lead comprehensive code reviews and enforce best practices in testing (CI/CD), security, and maintainability.

• Mentor and upskill junior engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence and continuous learning.

• Collaborate closely with Research Scientists and Product Managers to operationalize complex algorithms.

Core Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience.

• Proficiency in at least one modern backend programming language (e.g., Python, Go, Rust, Java) with a strong grasp of distributed systems patterns.

• Solid experience designing and deploying microservices on containerized platforms (e.g., Kubernetes, OpenShift) at large scale.

• Demonstrated experience with rigorous testing methodologies, including unit, integration, and performance testing.

• Proficiency in integrating AI tools into your daily development workflow to enhance productivity and efficiency.

• Demonstrated interest in Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning with a self-motivated drive to understand and navigate ambiguity in fast-paced, AI research-oriented environments.

Level-Specific Qualifications

• 8+ years of software development experience, with a track record of delivering complex systems in cloud environments.

• Proven ability to lead technical initiatives 

• Ability to manage multiple complex projects concurrently, balancing immediate delivery with long-term architectural health.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.

• Prior experience specifically building or optimizing developer tooling for ML/AI workflows (MLOps).

• Advanced programming expertise in Python, specifically related to the ML ecosystem.

• Proven track record of contributions to Open Source projects or communities.

• Deep knowledge of machine learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow).

• Experience with large language models and model customization techniques.

• Advanced degree (Master’s or PhD) in Machine Learning, NLP, or a related field.

• Experience with Red Hat products.

Pay Transparency

Red Hat determines compensation based on several factors including but not limited to job location, experience, applicable skills and training, external market value, and internal pay equity. Annual salary is one component of Red Hat’s compensation package. This position may also be eligible for bonus, commission, and/or equity. For positions with Remote-US locations, the actual salary range for the position may differ based on location but will be commensurate with job duties and relevant work experience. 

About Red Hat

Red Hat is the world’s leading provider of enterprise open source software solutions, using a community-powered approach to deliver high-performing Linux, cloud, container, and Kubernetes technologies. Spread across 40+ countries, our associates work flexibly across work environments, from in-office, to office-flex, to fully remote, depending on the requirements of their role. Red Hatters are encouraged to bring their best ideas, no matter their title or tenure. We're a leader in open source because of our open and inclusive environment. We hire creative, passionate people ready to contribute their ideas, help solve complex problems, and make an impact.

Benefits
●    Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage
●    Flexible Spending Account - healthcare and dependent care
●    Health Savings Account - high deductible medical plan
●    Retirement 401(k) with employer match
●    Paid time off and holidays
●    Paid parental leave plans for all new parents
●    Leave benefits including disability, paid family medical leave, and paid military leave
●    Additional benefits including employee stock purchase plan, family planning reimbursement, tuition reimbursement, transportation expense account, employee assistance program, and more! 

Note: These benefits are only applicable to full time, permanent associates at Red Hat located in the United States. 

Inclusion at Red Hat
Red Hat’s culture is built on the open source principles of transparency, collaboration, and inclusion, where the best ideas can come from anywhere and anyone. When this is realized, it empowers people from different backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences to come together to share ideas, challenge the status quo, and drive innovation. Our aspiration is that everyone experiences this culture with equal opportunity and access, and that all voices are not only heard but also celebrated. We hope you will join our celebration, and we welcome and encourage applicants from all the beautiful dimensions that compose our global village.

Equal Opportunity Policy (EEO)
Red Hat is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and an affirmative action employer. We review applications for employment without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, veteran status, genetic information, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, or any other basis prohibited by law.