AI Software Engineer
Content + Source + Freshness • 14 Dec 2025 • 95% confidence
Offer value
Strong value due to competitive salary ranges, emphasis on AI integration, and a commitment to innovation.
- Salary range: $132,400 - $264,500/year
- Innovative tech focus with AI across workflows
- Flexibility of remote work
- Experience in backend systems required
Pros
- Competitive salary range of $132,400 - $264,500/year based on location
- Embeddeding of AI in workflows presents a novel challenge
- Remote work flexibility with modern tech stack
Cons
- Visa sponsorship is not available for this position
- Potentially high demands for experienced candidates
- May require fluency in multiple programming languages
Who it's for
Mid to Senior Level • Remote
Good fit
- Experienced backend developers
- Engineers interested in AI applications for business solutions
- Tech professionals ready to engage with emerging technologies
Not recommended for
- Individuals requiring visa sponsorship
- Candidates without substantial programming experience
- Entry-level developers looking for foundational roles
Motivation fit
Key skills
About the job
Job Description
Avalara is an AI-first company. We expect every engineer and manager to actively leverage AI to enhance productivity, quality, innovation, and customer value. AI is embedded in our workflows, decision-making, and products — and success at Avalara requires embracing AI as an essential capability, not an optional tool.
As a Software Development Engineer, Backend on the Returns team, you will design and deploy microservices to power next-generation tax compliance products. You'll report to the Director of Engineering, Returns-as-a-Service Framework.
This is a remote opportunity. #LI-Remote
This role is not eligible for visa sponsorship.
What Your Responsibilities Will Be
You will Develop microservices in a modern stack.
You will manage the cloud infrastructure: provision, secure, and tune workloads on AWS (EKS, ECS, Lambda, RDS, DynamoDB, SQS, EventBridge, IAM) and evaluate or integrate other cloud vendors when needed (e.g., Azure OpenAI, GCP Vertex).
Integrate generative-AI APIs and tooling: prototype, productionize, and monitor features using providers such as OpenAI, Anthropic, or Bedrock; orchestrate prompts/agents via LangChain or bespoke frameworks; enforce data-privacy guardrails.
Champion engineering best practices: CI/CD with GitLab Actions, infrastructure-as-code (Terraform/CDK), automated testing, SLO/SLA ownership, and cost optimization.
- Mentor and collaborate: pair on tricky problems, review PRs with empathy, and partner with product, design, and ML teams to ship valuable experiences.
What You'll Need to be Successful
Minimum of 4 years work experience building and operating production backend systems
Minimum of 4 years knowledge of AWS primitives (VPC networking, IAM, security, observability, billing) and experience migrating or operating workloads across multiple cloud providers
Proficiency in one or more backend languages (TypeScript/Node.js, Go, Python, Java) and comfort working full-stack when needed
Hands-on experience calling or hosting generative-AI models (OpenAI, Bedrock, Vertex, Hugging Face) with understanding of prompt design, token costs, rate limits, and basic RAG patterns
Pay Range Details
The base pay range(s) below are provided in compliance with state specific laws. Pay ranges may be different in other locations.
Colorado $132,400-$218,400 (annually)
Washington $132,400-$241,400 (annually)
California $132,400-$264,500 (annually)
NYC $146,400-$264,500 (annually)
The pay range above is the general base pay range for you in the state listed. Your actual salary/wage may be based on several factors, such as geographic location, candidate experience and qualifications, market and business considerations. This role is eligible for an annual bonus based on company performance, depending on the terms of the applicable plan and your role.
How We'll Take Care of You
Total Rewards
In addition to a great compensation package, paid time off, and paid parental leave, many Avalara employees are eligible for bonuses.
Health & Wellness
Benefits vary by location but generally include private medical, life, and disability insurance.
Inclusive culture and diversity
Avalara strongly supports diversity, equity, and inclusion, and is committed to integrating them into our business practices and our organizational culture. We also have a total of 8 employee-run resource groups, each with senior leadership and exec sponsorship.
What You Need To Know About Avalara
We’re defining the relationship between tax and tech.
We’ve already built an industry-leading cloud compliance platform, processing over 54 billion customer API calls and over 6.6 million tax returns a year. Our growth is real - we're a billion dollar business - and we’re not slowing down until we’ve achieved our mission - to be part of every transaction in the world.
We’re bright, innovative, and disruptive, like the orange we love to wear. It captures our quirky spirit and optimistic mindset. It shows off the culture we’ve designed, that empowers our people to win. We’ve been different from day one. Join us, and your career will be too.
We’re An Equal Opportunity Employer
Supporting diversity and inclusion is a cornerstone of our company — we don’t want people to fit into our culture, but to enrich it. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, age, gender, national orientation, disability, sexual orientation, US Veteran status, or any other factor protected by law. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know.
