Principal Software Engineer Core GenAI Platform
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Job Location:
San Mateo, CA - USA
Monthly Salary:
Not Disclosed
Posted on:
Yesterday
Vacancies:
1 Vacancy
Job Summary
About Upstart
Upstart is the leading AI lending marketplace partnering with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit. By leveraging Upstarts AI marketplace Upstart-powered banks and credit unions can have higher approval rates and lower loss rates across races ages and genders while simultaneously delivering the exceptional digital-first lending experience their customers demand. More than 80% of borrowers are approved instantly with zero documentation to upload.
Upstart is a digital-first company which means that most Upstarters live and work anywhere in the United States. However we also have offices in San Mateo California; Columbus Ohio; and Austin Texas.
Most Upstarters join us because they connect with our mission of enabling access to effortless credit based on true risk. If you are energized by the impact you can make at Upstart wed love to hear from you!
The Team
Upstarts GenAI Core Platform team builds the foundational infrastructure that democratizes access to generative AI across the company. As a Principal Software Engineer you will provide technical leadership across multiple cross-functional teams shaping the vision architecture and adoption strategy for our new GenAI platform for Engineers and non-Engineers alike. You will work closely with engineering leaders ML researchers and product stakeholders to ensure Upstart can scale the safe efficient and responsible use of LLMs across all business domains.
This role goes beyond delivery. It is about setting long-term direction de-risking our most ambitious AI initiatives and raising the bar for technical excellence across the short you will have a direct influence and impact on how we enable and implement GenAI and LLMs internally at Upstart.
How Youll Make an Impact
- Define and drive the multi-year technical roadmap for the Core GenAI Platform influencing adoption and alignment across several engineering teams
- Lead architecture and design of large-scale mission-critical systems for model inference orchestration and compliance
- Identify and solve systemic technical risks that impact multiple teams and business-critical AI initiatives
- Build high-leverage generalizable platform components that meaningfully accelerate the productivity of engineers across Upstart
- Mentor senior engineers (L5) and shape the growth of future technical leaders fostering a culture of learning and excellence
- Collaborate with VP-level and above leadership to influence business strategy with technical insight
- Represent Upstart internally and externally as a thought leader in GenAI systems through executive reviews cross-company forums and industry venues
- Establish operational standards for GenAI integrations ensuring security fairness and reliability at scale
Minimum Qualifications
- 10 years of professional software engineering experience with at least 3 years leading large-scale cross-team technical initiatives
- Proven track record of delivering complex distributed systems and platform infrastructure that span multiple teams
- Deep expertise in backend systems and infrastructure technologies such as Kubernetes Docker Terraform and cloud-native architectures
- Experience designing and operationalizing ML/LLM platforms at scale including optimization for cost latency and reliability
- Demonstrated ability to set long-term technical direction and influence organizational strategy
- Excellent communication skills with a history of driving alignment across engineering and business stakeholders
Preferred Qualifications
- Full-stack engineering experience (Python FastAPI Kotlin Spring React/TypeScript or similar)
- Expertise in LLM-specific infrastructure such as inference optimization (quantization ONNX streaming) retrieval-augmented generation and vector databases
- Hands-on experience with LLM toolchains such as LangChain LlamaIndex or OpenAI APIs
- Recognized as a technical leader beyond your immediate team influencing platform strategy across organizations
- Awareness of industry best practices and risks in GenAI including hallucination mitigation fairness explainability and data privacy
- Experience mentoring senior engineers and shaping organizational standards for operational excellence
What youll love:
- Competitive Compensation (base bonus & equity)
- Comprehensive medical dental and vision coverage with Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart
- 401(k) with 100% company match up to $4500 and immediate vesting and after-tax savings
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
- Life and disability insurance
- Generous holiday vacation sick and safety leave
- Supportive parental family care and military leave programs
- Annual wellness technology & ergonomic reimbursement programs
- Social activities including team events and on-sites all-company updates employee resource groups (ERGs) and other interest groups such as book clubs fitness investing and volunteering
- Catered lunches snacks & drinks when working in offices
#LI-MidSenior
At Upstart your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic locationwith our digital first philosophy Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills experience and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.
In addition Upstart provides employees with target bonuses equity compensation and generous benefits packages (including medical dental vision and 401k).
Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. We are dedicated to ensuring that underrepresented classes receive better access to affordable credit and are just as committed to embracing diversity and inclusion in our hiring practices. We celebrate all cultures backgrounds perspectives and experiences and know that we can only become better together.
If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application interviewing completing any pre-employment testing or otherwise participating in the employee selection process please email
Staff IC
Key Skills
- Continuous Integration
- Docker
- Jenkins
- Python
- System Design
- Agile
- C/C++
- Go
- Systems Engineering
- Software Development
- Java
- Distributed Systems
About Company
Through Upstart, apply online for a fast personal loan, auto refinancing, or debt consolidation. Try our quick rate check today with no impact to your credit!
