Lead Full Stack AI Engineer

Eligibility RequirementDue to the nature of work with our client, applicants must be either:U.S. Citizen orGreen Card holder (Permanent Resident)Unfortunately, we are unable to transfer / sponsor new H-1B visas or accept applicants who require future visa sponsorship. We are also unable to consider candidates currently on OPT even if you have started the H-1B process.role = "Lead ENGINEER" if raises_bar(team) and depth >= LEGENDARY and ships_code else "SENIOR"Let’s decode thisWe're not just looking for someone who has "been around for 10+ years". We're looking for someone who has raised the bar for in backend or full-stack engineering for 10+ years.raises_bar(team) → The people around you write better code because you are there. You mentor through pairing and feedback, not hierarchy.depth >= LEGENDARY → You have gone deep enough to hold strong opinions, and humble enough to change them.ships_code → You still build. Regularly. In production.This role isn’t for everyone. It’s for engineers who want to stay close to the code, go deep, and build software where AI is becoming part of the system. If that sounds like you - Apply.What the work looks likeWe can't promise which problem you'll pick up, but the menu right now looks something like this:Redesign a ClickHouse schema so an ad buyer can query 85 billion rows in under two seconds, and discover that pre-exploding the rows 168x is actually the right answer.Keep a vehicle telemetry platform moving billions of messages a day without the Kafka consumers falling over.Build the engineering spine of a mobile wallet used by more than two billion people across four continents.Ship the data product behind peer-review submissions for one of the world's largest scientific publishers.The list changes. The pattern doesn't: data-heavy, distributed, and often sitting on top of something that already exists and isn't perfect.What you will actually doDesign and build systems that deal with real-world complexity (not toy problems)Write production code frequently, not just review or directBuild services and applications that interface with modern AI stacks - model APIs, embeddings, vector databases and other AI capabilitiesShip robust, production-level AI-powered systemsWork across languages when needed, not just your comfort zoneBreak down messy problems into clean, maintainable systemsPush back on bad ideas, including oursYou won’t be:A people managerA “review-only” architectSomeone removed from the codeSomeone whose job is primarily model training or ML researchHow we think about engineeringWe care about:Code that is simple, testable, and built to changeEngineers who can explain their design decisions clearlyTDD, refactoring, and continuous improvement - not as rituals, but as toolsChoosing the right technology, not the fashionable oneSoftware engineers who understand AI - not necessarily ML researchers who happen to write softwareWe don’t care much about:BuzzwordsFramework loyaltyWhether you’ve used our exact stack beforeTech (context, not a checklist)TypeScript, Java, Scala, Kotlin, Go, Elixir, Python, .NET, Node.js, RustYou don't need to have shipped all of these. You do need the ability to learn what the problem demands.What you’ll getA place where Lead Engineers still write code - dailyOne designation across the company: **Solution Consultant**. "Lead Engineer" is just the translation for the outside worldSmall teams, high ownership, large impact, minimal process overheadNo reporting managers. Decisions happen where the code doesFind your balance between work and life’s ups and downs with unlimited leave when you really need it**Open salaries.** Inside Sahaj, every Sahajeevi can see every other Sahajeevi's pay, including the founders'. The annual hike is voted on collectively in a room where the whole company reads the P&L