Staff AI Platform Developer [590]

About the role

D-Wave is seeking a Staff AI Platform Developer to lead the architecture and development of internal AI tooling across the company. In this role, you will help us build practical tools using LLMs, AI agents, retrieval-augmented generation, workflow automation, and AI-assisted development capabilities. Your work will help D-Wavers work faster and more effectively while keeping our internal tools secure, maintainable, reliable, and cost-effective.

As part of D-Wave's software organization, you will work with our Product Development teams to create AI-powered solutions to address high-value internal use cases that move the needle in terms of productivity, quality, security, or job satisfaction. You will be a hands-on architect and builder who can take ideas from prototype to production, determine when AI is the right solution, and select the AI-powered tools and technologies best suited to each use case. No quantum computing knowledge is required, but you will have the opportunity to learn about this next generation of computing.

What you'll do

• Drive the adoption of AI capabilities across D-Wave’s Product Development teams
• Lead the architecture and implementation of internal AI solutions, including LLM applications, agents, RAG systems, and workflow automation
• Build prototypes and production services that integrate with internal systems such as GitHub, Jira, Slack, documentation platforms, service desks, and business applications
• Partner with DevOps to design and create reusable platform components for model access, prompt/configuration management, permissions-aware retrieval, logging, monitoring, evaluation, and cost tracking
• Evaluate and select AI models, APIs, tools, and vendors with a focus on quality, reliability, security, privacy, latency, and cost
• Design guardrails for data handling, access control, prompt injection, output validation, audit logging, and human-in-the-loop review
• Transition production ready AI solutions back to the Product Development teams for long term ownership and ongoing support
• Help teams automate internal workflows and adopt AI solutions in practical, safe, and measurable ways
• Document patterns and best practices so other developers can build AI-enabled tools consistently
• Track adoption, user feedback, operational reliability, and cost to ensure the AI solutions deliver measurable value
• Promote responsible AI practices (usage policies, guardrails, and data handling standards) across development teams
• Lead AI office hours and facilitate technical knowledge sharing across engineering teams.
• Participate in the yearly D-Wave Hackathon where you can bring new ideas to life
• Join the on-call rotation to help ensure the high availability and reliability of D-Wave applications – 6 to 12 months after starting

About you

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related technical discipline, or equivalent experience
• 7+ years of professional experience in software engineering, platform engineering, internal tool development, DevOps, ML systems, or a related discipline
• Extensive experience developing across the LLM application stack: prompt engineering, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), embeddings, vector search, reranking ) , context management, structured outputs, and tool use
• Extensive experience with agentic orchestration frameworks and interoperability protocols (MCP, ACP)
• Experience evaluating, fine-tuning, securing (guardrails), and cost-optimizing LLM systems in production
• Strong proficiency in Python, TypeScript/JavaScript, or another modern language used for backend services and automation
• Experience designing, implementing, and consuming REST APIs and backend services
• Experience with Git, CI/CD, Linux/Unix environments, containers, and production deployment workflows
• Experience building AI solutions that securely leverage sensitive internal data and company knowledge sources
• Excellent written and verbal technical communication skills, including requirements capture and technical documentation
• Ability to work across teams, clarify ambiguous problems, and turn business workflows into practical technical solutions
• Self-motivated, proactive, flexible, curious, and committed to continuous learning

Bonus (Nice to have)

• Experience with AWS, Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, or other cloud and infrastructure tools
• Experience integrating with Slack, Jira, GitHub, Confluence, Google Workspace, Salesforce, Zendesk, ServiceNow, or similar systems
• Experience with self-hosted, open-source, or private AI model deployments
• Experience in quantum computing, scientific computing, hardware/software systems, or other highly technical domains

A D-Waver's DNA

• We look at the future and say “why not”; we see possibilities where others see problems or routines. We show the way ahead and are committed to achieving ambitious goals.
• We practice straight talk and listen generously to each other with empathy. We value different opinions and points of views. We ensure that we connect outside as well as inside to learn from others and inspire each other.
• We hold ourselves accountable for delivering results. We make decisions & take responsibility so that we can act & support each other.
• As leaders we motivate & engage our teams to undertake beyond what they originally thought possible, by developing our teams & creating the conditions for people to grow and empower themselves through enabling & coaching.

Our Compensation Philosophy is Simple but Powerful:

We believe providing D-Wavers with company ownership, competitive pay, and a range of meaningful benefits is the start of creating a culture where people want to give the best they’ve got — not because they’re simply making money, but because they’ve fallen in love with our vision, mission, values, and team. 

During the interview process, your Recruiter will review our total rewards (base, equity, bonus, perks, benefit, culture) offerings. The final offer is determined by your proficiencies within this level.  

Inclusion: 

We celebrate diverse perspectives to drive innovation in our pursuit. Our employees range from distinguished domain experts with decades of experience in their respective fields, to bright and motivated graduates eager to make their mark. Our diverse and innovative team will make you feel appreciated, supported and empower your career growth at D-Wave.

The Fine Print: 

No 3rd party candidates will be accepted

It is D-Wave policy to provide equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state/provincial, local law.

The base pay range for this role is:

167,000 - 230,000 CAD per year (Canada)

167,000 - 230,000 USD per year (United States)