Staff Backend Engineer – AI Solutions Architect
Summary
Fully remote contract role for a Staff Backend Engineer to architect and deliver production-grade, AI-powered backend systems — LLM integrations, AI agents, and RAG — for a California-based company, using Python/Java/Go, cloud platforms, Kubernetes, and event-driven microservices.
About the Role
We are seeking a highly experienced Staff Backend Engineer – AI Solutions Architect to design, architect, and deliver scalable, production-grade AI-powered backend solutions. This is a fully remote contract opportunity with a California-based technology company. The ideal candidate combines deep backend engineering expertise with strong AI architecture capabilities, hands-on technical leadership, and experience building enterprise-grade distributed systems.
Key Responsibilities
Architect and develop scalable, secure, and high-performance backend services and distributed systems. Lead the design and implementation of AI-native applications, LLM integrations, AI agents, and RAG architectures. Build robust APIs, microservices, and event-driven systems supporting enterprise AI solutions. Define technical architecture, engineering best practices, and scalable integration patterns. Design cloud-native solutions leveraging AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. Drive system reliability, performance optimization, security, and observability. Collaborate with product managers, engineers, and stakeholders to translate business requirements into practical AI solutions. Provide hands-on technical leadership, architecture reviews, and mentorship to engineering teams. Evaluate emerging AI technologies and recommend production-ready solutions.
Required Qualifications
12+ years of professional software engineering experience, including significant backend architecture responsibilities. Advanced proficiency in Python, Java, Go, or comparable backend technologies. Proven experience designing distributed systems, microservices, and high-throughput APIs. Hands-on experience architecting and integrating AI/ML services and LLM-powered applications. Strong expertise in cloud architecture, containerization, Kubernetes, and CI/CD. Experience with relational and NoSQL databases, caching, and asynchronous messaging. Strong system design, troubleshooting, and technical decision-making skills. Excellent communication skills and ability to collaborate effectively in fully remote environments.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with OpenAI APIs, Anthropic Claude, LangChain, LangGraph, or similar frameworks. Expertise in RAG, vector databases, embeddings, and semantic search. Experience with AI agent orchestration, LLMOps, and production AI observability. Knowledge of enterprise AI security, governance, and responsible AI practices. Previous experience working in remote-first engineering teams or contract-based technical leadership roles.
Engagement Details
Work Arrangement: 100% Remote Company Location: California, United States Compensation: $80000~$100000
Why Join Us?
Work on challenging, high-impact AI engineering initiatives where you can influence architectural decisions, build innovative AI-powered solutions, and contribute directly to the development of next-generation enterprise technology.