Software Engineer, AI Team

Role summary

Volley is a leader in the voice-activated entertainment space with AI at the core powering voice-driven games for our users including speech recognition and proprietary systems that build upon Natural Language Understanding (NLU). We are pioneers in leveraging generative AI for gaming with 20 Questions being one of the first LLM-powered experiences on connected platforms and we are actively expanding our portfolio. 

We’re looking for a Full Stack Software Engineer for our AI Team to join in helping us create some of our flagship voice-AI-driven games. You will join a team of engineers working across platforms including Roku, FireTV, and Alexa to deliver best-in-class voice-activated AI gaming experiences to our users.

Our AI team is at the forefront of our R&D efforts ensuring that we’re leveraging the advances in AI technology to deliver the best experiences for our users. We are innovating on fun, creative, new games and enhancing user engagement in existing titles by leveraging AI. You will partner with many teams and functions to ensure that we have appropriate data, monitoring, and testing tools in place and ensure appropriate guardrails are in place to deliver safe and fun experiences for our users.

We’re actively expanding our game titles and platforms and this is an opportunity to play a pivotal role in creating innovative, fun AI-powered games across connected devices.

This job opportunity offers a hybrid work arrangement, and we are specifically seeking candidates who are comfortable with on-site attendance in our Bay Area office three times per week and are either currently residing in or near the Bay Area or willing to relocate for on-site work.

What you'll do at Volley

  • Work on products that reach millions of active users
  • Develop best-in-class voice-controlled products that are social, engaging, and fun to play
  • Build machine learning systems and pipelines for training, shipping, and operating machine learning models
  • Contribute to our powerful internal engine that allows developers to build and iterate quickly
  • Architect and deliver solutions for our products that are reliable and scalable
  • Collaborate with UX experts, designers, and data analysts to deliver products quickly and effectively

Stuff you may have done before

  • Built consumer-facing apps or games at scale as a Full Stack Engineer
  • Experience in Natural Language Processing, Audio ML, Signal Processing or Text Generation
  • Operated in environments with fast development cycles focused on rapid product iteration
  • Been part of a high-performing engineering team
  • Worked with audio, voice, or other emerging technologies

Must-haves

  • 4+ years of professional coding experience preferably in a Full Stack Engineering capacity 
  • Experience with or strong interest in modern NodeJS and/or Typescript or other strongly typed languages
  • Some experience in Machine Learning or Generative AI 
  • Experience working on a product and user experience-focused software development team
  • Passion for entertainment and/or games

Our stack

  • React, Node, Express, Typescript: app/API development
  • Redis, DynamoDB, PostgreSQL, AWS Aurora: database and caching
  • Docker/Kubernetes: containerized shipping and deployment
  • Retool: front-end CMS for API we use to manage our content

Your first 90 days

  • Onboard into Volley’s engine and deployment infrastructure
  • Participate in product feature and roadmap discussions with your product manager
  • Familiarize yourself with the project architecture and lay out a technical roadmap
  • Deploy lots of new experiments, features, and fixes into production
  • Work directly with the product to improve conversion, retention, and monetization for some of the most beloved games in the world

The hiring process

  • Stage 1: (Preliminary Video Call) with a member of our recruitment team
  • Stage 2: (Technical Screen Video Call) with one of our engineers + (Behavioral Screen Video Call) with one of our engineering managers
  • Stage 3: (Onsite) with various partners and team members
  • Stage 4: (Offer)
  • Stage 5: (Founder Chat) with our Founders

What's in it for you

  • Your medical, dental, and vision insurance is 100% covered by Volley, for yourself and all dependents and we match 401k!
  • We offer a flexible, hybrid work-from-home and in-office work model.
  • We offer 4 weeks of paid time off (enforced 2-week minimum), 16 paid holidays, 40 hours of bereavement leave, and unlimited sick days.
  • Our generous parental leave policy includes 24 weeks at 100% pay for birthing parents and 12 weeks at 100% pay for non-birthing parents.
  • We offer visa support for eligible candidates, making relocating for the job smoother and more streamlined.
  • A full breakdown of our benefits is here!

For Pay Transparency: The salary range that we expect to pay for this position is $144,000 - $216,000 annually. This is a portion of the pay band for the role and level we are seeking. The final offer amount will depend on experience, education and skills. Base pay is only one part of the total package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work.

About Us

Volley is the leading developer of AI-powered games for smart TVs, Amazon Alexa, and mobile devices. Our games attract millions of users every month. Popular Volley games include Song Quiz, Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune.

We believe voice interfaces will become the main way people access entertainment in their living rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, and cars. We’re building a bundled subscription product similar to Netflix or Spotify for the emerging category of “AI-powered games.”

Volley was founded by Max Child and James Wilsterman in 2016. We're headquartered in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco. We’re a quickly growing team that truly enjoys working together. If you think you would enjoy creating joyful games on top of a rapidly evolving AI technology stack, please get in touch!

Volley believes in an inclusive workplace and is committed to building a team from a variety of backgrounds. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive the other benefits and privileges of employment.

Underrepresented candidates and candidates from nontraditional backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply!

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf


Select...
Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Volley’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.