Forward Deployed Software Engineer, Public Sector

Role

Scale AI's Public Sector Engineering team seeks a Forward Deployed Software Engineer to embed with U.S. government customers, including the Army, Air Force, Joint commands, and Intelligence Community. Build and deploy AI applications supporting critical missions, owning delivery from prototype through production in urgent, ambiguous environments.

Responsibilities

• Embed with government customers to understand their missions, scope problems, and deliver working software.
• Design, build, deploy, and maintain solutions at customer sites, from prototype to stable production.
• Build robust backend systems and data integrations connecting customer environments with Scale's platform.
• Partner with product and engineering to translate field feedback into roadmap improvements and reusable platform capabilities.
• Serve as the technical point of contact for customer stakeholders, guiding adoption and mission impact.

Required Qualifications

• At least 5 years of software engineering experience, ideally in customer-facing, forward-deployed, or government contexts.
• Strong production coding in Python and TypeScript, or comparable modern languages.
• Comfort across the stack, including AWS, Azure, or GCP; containers; Linux; and networking fundamentals.
• Ability to work independently in ambiguous, fast-moving environments and make sound trade-offs under pressure.
• Active TS/SCI clearance or eligibility to obtain one.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building or deploying systems powered by LLMs or generative models.
• Familiarity with Node.js, React, Kubernetes, Docker, and Terraform.
• Data engineering experience covering ETL pipelines, data modeling, and data governance.

Locations and Travel

• Listed locations: Austin, TX; Colorado Springs, CO; Honolulu, HI; Omaha, NE; St. Louis, MO; and Washington, DC.
• Hybrid, customer-facing role requiring significant time on-site with customers.
• Expect 25% travel, increasing to up to 50% as necessary, and/or relocation to Washington, DC or St. Louis.

Compensation and Benefits

Annual base salary ranges vary by location:

• San Francisco, New York, and Seattle: $184,000–$292,560 USD.
• Hawaii, Washington, DC, Texas, and Colorado: $165,600–$263,304 USD.
• St. Louis: $138,000–$219,420 USD.

Compensation depends on location, career level, skills, experience, qualifications, interview performance, and relevant education or training. Eligible roles receive equity compensation subject to Board approval; the recruiter can confirm eligibility and location-specific salary details. Benefits include health, dental, and vision coverage, retirement benefits, a learning and development stipend, and generous PTO. A commuter stipend may also be available.

Application Rules

• Candidates must wait 90 days before being reconsidered for the same role.
• Applicants needing disability-related recruiting accommodations may contact accommodations@scale.com.