Staff Software Engineer

Description:

SoFi, a leading next-generation financial services company and national bank, is seeking an experienced Staff Software Engineer (AI) to join its growing AI Engineering team in San Francisco. The role is focused on building and deploying cutting-edge AI-driven solutions that enhance SoFi members’ financial journeys by embedding personalized financial insights directly into SoFi’s products.

As part of this newly formed AI team, you will play a strategic role in driving architecture, technical decisions, and innovative implementations that leverage AI and machine learning technologies. This position is ideal for a highly skilled engineer who thrives in a collaborative environment, enjoys solving complex challenges, and is passionate about applying AI to real-world financial applications.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the technical design, architecture, and development of scalable AI-powered systems and services.

• Translate product requirements into technical solutions, ensuring high availability and performance.

• Build, test, and deploy AI applications, including LLM (Large Language Model) integrations, fine-tuning, and prompt engineering.

• Mentor and guide junior engineers while fostering a culture of innovation and technical excellence.

• Drive cross-functional collaboration with Product, Design, and Engineering teams throughout the product lifecycle.

• Participate in system design reviews, code reviews, and performance optimizations.

• Explore and implement advanced technologies, creating opportunities for new AI-driven initiatives.

• Ensure secure, scalable, and maintainable solutions in a microservice/SOA environment.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field (advanced degrees preferred).

• Minimum of 8 years of professional software engineering experience.

• Proficiency in Java, Kotlin, Spring, AWS, PostgreSQL, and Kubernetes.

• Strong experience with Python and AI/ML stacks, including building AI agents, MCP servers, fine-tuning models, and prompt engineering.

• Hands-on experience with LLMs and applications leveraging generative AI.

• Deep understanding of relational databases, ORMs, and distributed systems.

• Proven success in designing and delivering complex software projects from inception to deployment.

• Strong ownership mindset, with the ability to balance technical debt against new feature delivery.

• Excellent collaboration skills, with experience in code reviews, pull request management, and agile development practices.

Compensation & Benefits:

• Competitive monthly salary ranging from $12,800 to $22,000, depending on skills, experience, and location.

• Comprehensive benefits package including healthcare, retirement plans, paid time off, and employee wellness initiatives.

• Access to SoFi’s extensive employee benefits program designed to support personal and professional growth.