Senior AI Framework Engineer

ABOUT THIS ROLE

At Modular, we are building a next generation AI platform to power modern

applications and facilitate access to cutting-edge hardware. The MAX Framework

is our developer-facing layer: it defines the APIs developers use to express

models, integrate custom kernels, orchestrate execution, iterate on quality and

ship systems into production.

As an Senior AI Framework Engineer for MAX, you will own and evolve core APIs

and developer experience for inference and training of AI models. You will work

at the intersection of API design, systems engineering, and modern AI

frameworks. Your output will be the specifications, abstractions, and reference

implementations that make MAX feel coherent, powerful, and intuitive to use —

while preserving performance, portability, maintainability and TCO.

LOCATION: Candidates based in the US or Canada are welcome to apply. You can

work in our office in Los Altos, CA or remotely from home. Onboarding for new

hires is conducted in-person in our Los Altos, CA office.

WHAT YOU WILL DO

* Influence the design of the API surface for MAX: namespaces, core

abstractions, extension points, programming model, compatibility guarantees

and developer experience.

* Design inference APIs that support real-world serving needs: model loading,

distributed inference, quantization, tokenization/pipelines, configuration

surfaces, batching/streaming, and deployment-oriented ergonomics.

* Design training APIs that scale from single device to distributed execution,

with clear primitives for device placement, parallelism, checkpointing, and

observability.

* Create a coherent programming model across Python and Mojo-adjacent surfaces:

align naming, types, and conventions; avoid leaky abstractions; define the

"pit of success".

* Drive RFCs and technical specs: write and socialize proposals; gather

feedback from internal model engineers and external users; iterate towards

consensus.

* Partner cross-functionally with compiler/runtime, kernels, cloud/serving, and

documentation/DevRel teams to ensure APIs map cleanly to underlying

capabilities.

* Build reference implementations and exemplar code: golden-path examples,

architecture templates, and best-practice patterns that teams can copy.

* Set quality bars for APIs: versioning policy, deprecation strategy, test

strategy, and documentation requirements.

WHAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE

* Significant experience designing and evolving developer-facing APIs (SDKs,

frameworks, or platforms).

* Strong understanding of modern AI frameworks and their design tradeoffs

(e.g., PyTorch, JAX, TensorFlow, vLLM, XLA/MLIR-adjacent ecosystems).

* Experience with inference and training systems (model execution graphs,

compilation, runtime scheduling, distributed execution, checkpointing,

performance tuning).

* Fluency in one or more systems / performance languages (C++, Rust, Go) and

one or more user-facing languages (Python; familiarity with Mojo is a plus).

* Excellent taste for API ergonomics: naming, composability, types, error

handling, configurability, and clarity.

* Strong written communication: you can write specs that engineers can

implement without ambiguity.

* High engineering standards, pragmatism, and a bias towards incremental

development without compromising long term design.

WHAT MODULAR BRINGS TO THE TABLE:

* Amazing Team. We are a progressive and agile team with some of the industry’s

best engineering and product leaders.

* World-class Benefits. In order to attract the best, we need to offer the

best. Your benefits package may include comprehensive healthcare coverage,

retirement and savings programs, employee stock purchase opportunities, paid

time off, wellbeing resources, family support programs, and learning and

development opportunities. Please note that specific benefit packages may

vary based on your location, you can read more about benefits offered by

Qualcomm here [https://www.qualcomm.com/company/careers/benefits].

* Competitive Compensation. We offer very strong compensation packages,

including RSU grants. We want people to be focused on their best work and

believe in tailoring compensation plans to meet the needs of our workforce.

* Team Building Events. We organize regular team onsites and local meetups in

Los Altos, CA as well as different cities. Traveling 2-4 times a year is

expected for all roles.

Working at Modular will enable you to grow quickly as you work alongside

incredibly motivated and talented people who have high standards, possess a

growth mindset, and a purpose to truly change the world.

Working at Modular will enable you to grow quickly as you work alongside

incredibly motivated and talented people who have high standards, possess a

growth mindset, and share a purpose to fundamentally change how developers build

and deploy AI systems.

The estimated base salary range for this role to be performed in the US,

regardless of the state, is $180,000–$324,000 USD.

The estimated base salary range for this role to be performed in Canada,

regardless of the province, is $172,400.00–$258,700.00 CAD.

The salary for the successful applicant will depend on a variety of permissible,

non-discriminatory job-related factors, which include but are not limited to

education, training, work experience, business needs, or market demands. This

range may be modified in the future. The total compensation for a candidate will

also include annual target bonus, equity, and benefits, with equity making up a

significant portion of total compensation.

For candidates who fall outside of the listed requirements, we nevertheless

encourage you to apply, as we may have openings at lower or higher levels than

the one advertised.