Back to jobs

Senior Back End Engineer

San Francisco (Remote)

About Us

At You.com, we are building the AI Search Infrastructure that powers modern AI systems. Our goal is to create the trusted knowledge layer that agents, applications, and enterprises rely on to retrieve real-time, accurate, and citation-backed information.

Our platform combines proprietary vertical indexes with LLM-optimized retrieval systems to power AI agents, applications, and enterprise workflows. We are solving hard problems across search, large language models, and large-scale infrastructure to make AI systems more reliable, transparent, and useful.

Our team includes engineers, researchers, product builders, and operators who care about solving meaningful problems and delivering real-world impact. Whether you are improving core infrastructure, shaping product experiences, or helping bring new AI capabilities to market, your work will help define how modern AI finds and uses knowledge.

About the Role

Are you passionate about building scalable architectures, improving platform performance, and contributing to cutting-edge technology? We’re looking for a Senior Backend Engineer to design and develop the foundational systems and platforms that power our LLM-based generative AI assistant. In this role, you’ll focus on creating robust, secure, and scalable backend systems, improving infrastructure, and contributing to open-source projects that drive innovation. Your work will directly impact the technology that millions of users rely on every day.

This is a remote position open to candidates based in the United States. We also have co-working spaces in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York.

Responsibilities

  • Architect and Build Scalable Systems: Design, build, and maintain backend systems and infrastructure that support web-scale AI-driven products.
  • Improve Platform Performance: Focus on scalability, reliability, and security to ensure our systems can handle millions of users seamlessly.
  • Contribute to Open Source: Work on open-source projects and integrate cutting-edge technologies into our platform.
  • Optimize Data Pipelines: Develop and maintain production databases (SQL and NoSQL) and ensure performant query patterns that scale effectively.
  • Eliminate Technical Debt: Refactor and improve existing systems to enhance maintainability and scalability.
  • Establish Best Practices: Help define architectural patterns and team practices that enable long-term growth and innovation.
  • Collaborate Across Teams: Work with infrastructure and DevOps teams to ensure robust deployment and monitoring strategies.

Qualifications

  • Technical Expertise: Proven experience building and deploying mission-critical REST/RPC services with a focus on scalability and performance.
  • Infrastructure Knowledge: Familiarity with Kubernetes (k8s), deployment pipelines, and debugging system-level issues.
  • Database Proficiency: Expertise in designing and maintaining scalable SQL and NoSQL databases.
  • Open Source Contributions: Experience contributing to or maintaining open-source projects is a plus.
  • Problem-Solving Skills: Ability to tackle complex technical challenges and deliver elegant, maintainable solutions.
  • Collaboration Skills: Strong communication and teamwork abilities to work effectively with cross-functional technical teams.

 

Our salary bands are structured based on a combination of geographic tiers and internal leveling. Compensation is determined by multiple factors assessed during the interview process, with the final offer reflecting these considerations.

Salary Band

$200,000 - $250,000 USD

Company Perks:

  • Hubs in San Francisco and New York City offering regular in-person gatherings and co-working sessions

  • Flexible PTO with U.S. holidays observed and a week shutdown in December to rest and recharge*

  • A competitive health insurance plan covers 100% of the policyholder and 75% for dependents*

  • 12 weeks of paid parental leave in the US*

  • 401k program, 3% match - vested immediately!*

  • $500 work-from-home stipend to be used up to a year of your start date*

  • $600 technology stipend to support a portion of our hybrid/remote team's cell phone and internet expenses*

  • $1,200 per year Health & Wellness Allowance to support your personal goals*

  • The chance to collaborate with a team at the forefront of AI research

*Certain perks and benefits are limited to full-time employees only

You.com participates in E-Verify. We will provide the Social Security Administration (SSA) and, if necessary, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with information from each new employee’s Form I-9 to confirm work authorization. (English/Spanish: E-Verify Participation/Right to Work) We are also an inclusive, equitable, and accessible workplace. Please let us know if you require accommodation for any portion of the recruitment and hiring process.

Beware of Recruiting Scams:

You.com will only contact you through official @You.com email addresses and will never ask for payment or sensitive personal information during the hiring process.

Use of AI Tools During Our Hiring Process:

At You.com, we're thoughtful about how we use AI throughout our business — including our hiring process.

During certain stages of the interview process, we may use AI-powered tools to assist with administrative tasks such as scheduling, note-taking, transcription, or summarizing interview discussions. These tools are intended to support our interviewers by improving accuracy and efficiency — they do not make hiring decisions or replace human judgment.

All employment decisions are made by our recruiting team and hiring managers based on a holistic review of each candidate and applicable evaluation criteria.

If AI-assisted note-taking or transcription may be used during your interview, we will notify you in advance. If you prefer not to participate in an interview that uses these tools, you may opt out by informing your recruiter before your scheduled interview. We will work with you to provide an alternative interview experience where reasonably practicable.

Information collected during the hiring process is handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable law. By continuing with the application process, you acknowledge that you have read this notice. If AI-assisted tools are used during your interview and you have not opted out after receiving notice, you consent to their use as described above, where permitted by applicable law.

 

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

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

Due to a large influx of scam applicants, a lack of response here will result in your application being rejected.

If you do not have a LinkedIn, please submit your Github portfolio link instead.

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

U.S. Standard Demographic Questions

We invite applicants to share their demographic background. If you choose to complete this survey, your responses may be used to identify areas of improvement in our hiring process.
Select...
Select...
Select...
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 You.com’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.