Software Development Engineer, AWS Cognito, AWS Cognito

AWS Cognito is one of the highest-profile services in AWS Identity: it handles billions of authentication requests for thousands of companies. Our job is to make sign-in so reliable that no one thinks about it. At this scale thats a hard engineering problem.

As agents MCP tools and non-human identities start acting on behalf of users Cognito is building the solutions that let them sign in carry scoped and verifiable authority and be trusted the same way human identities are. If you want to help define what agentic auth means for AWS customers this is the place.

We are deliberately installing a startup culture inside a foundational AWS service: small teams that own problems end-to-end short paths from idea to production and a bias toward shipping and learning over waiting for permission. And we are AI-native in how we buildwe dont just use AI tools; we build our own agents for code review operational investigation and CR scaffolding and we engage AI first on most tasks. You get the ownership and pace of a startup with the scale customers and impact of core AWS.

Key job responsibilities
- Design build and operate highly available low-latency authentication services that real customers depend on 24/7.
- Own features end-to-end design implementation testing deployment and operationsfor services in the Cognito User Auth space (sign-in tokens devices and related data planes).
- Raise the bar on operational excellence: measurable availability latency and security improvements and automation that removes manual work.
- Work AI-native: engage AI first and build and extend the teams own agentic tooling for development code review and operational investigation.
- Dive deep on ambiguous production-impacting problems and drive them to a root cause and a durable fix.
- Collaborate across AWS Identity teams and mentor other engineers.

A day in the life
The challenges SDEs solve for at Amazon are big and influence millions of customers sellers and products around the world. We are looking for individuals who are passionate about creating new products features and services from scratch while managing ambiguity and the pace of a company where development cycles are measured in weeks not years.

- 3 years of non-internship professional software development experience
- 2 years of designing and developing large-scale multi-tiered multi-threaded embedded or distributed software applications tools systems and services using: C# C Java or Perl experience
- 1 years of software development engineer or related occupational experience
- Bachelors degree or foreign equivalent in Computer Science Engineering Mathematics or a related field
- Experience programming with at least one software programming language

- 3 years of full software development life cycle including coding standards code reviews source control management build processes testing and operations experience
- Experience contributing to the architecture and design (architecture design patterns reliability and scaling) of new and current systems
- Experience leveraging AI (Artificial Intelligence) agents for security review automation spec-driven development practices or adversarial red teaming

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status disability or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process including support for the interview or onboarding process please visit for more information. If the country/region youre applying in isnt listed please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience qualifications and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical dental vision prescription Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans EAP Mental Health Support Medical Advice Line Flexible Spending Accounts Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage) 401(k) matching paid time off and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at WA Seattle - 143700.00 - 194400.00 USD annually