Distinguished Engineer - San Francisco - Scale AI

Description

About Scale AI

Our mission is to develop reliable AI systems for the world's most important decisions. The Enterprise AI business delivers performant, reliable, and production-grade AI applications to enterprises across all industries by providing Generative AI expertise and infrastructure.

The Role

We're seeking a Distinguished Engineer - a hands‑on technical leader operating at the VP level - to shape the vision and technical roadmap of our core AI/ML infrastructure that powers enterprise AI applications. Reporting directly to the SVP of Engineering, Enterprise AI, this individual will drive long‑term technical direction for our Scale GenerativeAI Platform (SGP), influence architectural decisions across the company, and partner closely with engineering and product leaders to bring advanced AI capabilities to enterprise customers.

You'll serve as a cross‑organizational thought leader - setting standards for technical excellence, mentoring senior engineers, and ensuring our systems and models meet the demands of global‑scale deployment. This is a rare opportunity to influence both foundational AI infrastructure and the enterprise AI applications built on top of it.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the technical strategy for Scale's AI/ML infrastructure and SGP platform, balancing short and long‑term investments.
• Partner with senior engineering and product leadership to ensure scalable, secure, and performant enterprise AI systems.
• Lead architecture and design reviews across multiple teams, ensuring technical consistency and innovation.
• Serve as a trusted advisor and mentor to principal engineers and technical leads across the organization.
• Evaluate and integrate emerging technologies in AI, distributed systems, and data infrastructure to keep Scale at the frontier of innovation.
• Represent Scale externally in the AI community - through speaking engagements, partnerships, and thought leadership.
• Drive technical execution and accountability for critical cross‑functional initiatives that advance Scale's enterprise AI capabilities.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience as a technical software engineering leader.
• Proven record of technical leadership at AI‑native companies, hyperscalers, or equivalent high‑scale environments.
• Deep technical expertise in AI/ML infrastructure, knowledge of ML models/algorithm design/implementation and their application to real‑world problems; experience with GenAI preferred.
• Demonstrated success in setting technical vision and leading cross‑organizational initiatives with measurable business impact.
• Experience influencing and mentoring engineering teams in complex, matrixed environments.
• Ability to communicate and collaborate effectively to create a shared sense of vision or purpose cross‑team and cross‑functionality.
• Advanced degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field preferred but not required.

Culture & Impact

At Scale, we believe that AI should amplify human potential - and our engineering culture reflects that belief. Our teams operate at the intersection of innovation, rigor, and impact, solving some of the hardest problems in AI infrastructure and deployment.

The Distinguished Engineer will play a key role in shaping how AI systems are built, deployed, and governed within enterprise environments. This role represents the highest bar of technical excellence at Scale - a trusted voice in setting direction, enabling innovation, and ensuring that our technology scales responsibly and effectively to meet the evolving needs of our customers.

You'll have the opportunity to influence company‑wide strategy, contribute to industry‑leading work in generative AI infrastructure, and mentor the next generation of engineering talent pushing the boundaries of what's possible with AI.

Compensation packages at Scale for eligible roles include base salary, equity, and benefits. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position, determined by work location and additional factors, including job‑related skills, experience, interview performance, and relevant education or training. Scale employees in eligible roles are also granted equity based compensation, subject to Board of Director approval. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process, and confirm whether the hired role will be eligible for equity grant. You'll also receive benefits including, but not limited to: Comprehensive health, dental and vision coverage, retirement benefits, a learning and development stipend, and generous PTO. Additionally, this role may be eligible for additional benefits such as a commuter stipend.

Please reference the job posting's subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full‑time position in the locations of San Francisco, New York, Seattle is:

$285,200 - $356,500 USD

PLEASE NOTE: Our policy requires a 90‑day waiting period before reconsidering candidates for the same role. This allows us to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation of all applicants.

About Us:

At Scale, our mission is to develop reliable AI systems for the world's most important decisions. Our products provide the high‑quality data and full‑stack technologies that power the world's leading models, and help enterprises and governments build, deploy, and oversee AI applications that deliver real impact. We work closely with industry leaders like Meta, Cisco, DLA Piper, Mayo Clinic, Time Inc., the Government of Qatar, and U.S. government agencies including the Army and Air Force. We are expanding our team to accelerate the development of AI applications.

We believe that everyone should be able to bring their whole selves to work, which is why we are proud to be an inclusive and equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability status, gender identity or Veteran status.

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and mental disabilities. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation in the application or recruiting process due to a disability, please contact us at accommodations@scale.com. Please see the United States Department of Labor's Know Your Rights poster for additional information.

PLEASE NOTE: We collect, retain and use personal data for our professional business purposes, including notifying you of job opportunities that may be of interest and sharing with our affiliates. We limit the personal data we collect to that which we believe is appropriate and necessary to manage applicants' needs, provide our services, and comply with applicable laws. Any information we collect in connection with your application will be treated in accordance with our internal policies and programs designed to protect personal data. Please see our privacy policy for additional information.