Distinguished Engineer (San Francisco)

Job Requisition ID #26WD97979Position OverviewAs a Distinguished Engineer, you will serve as a hands-on technical leader driving the next generation of Product Access capabilities, including entitlements, licensing, and access enforcement across cloud and AI-powered products.You will define and help execute the long-term technical vision for Product Access platforms across Autodesk’s product ecosystem, enabling scalable and intelligent access to capabilities for both human and non-human actors, including services, automations, and AI agents.This role combines deep technical expertise with the ability to influence engineering direction through implementation, mentorship, innovation, and company-wide technical leadership. You will play a critical role in accelerating strategic initiatives, incubating greenfield capabilities, and modernizing engineering practices through AI-assisted software development workflows.You will operate across organizational boundaries to drive alignment, influence platform adoption, and help teams converge on scalable Product Access solutions that serve long-term company goals. Success in this role requires strong technical judgment, the ability to influence without direct authority, and a pragmatic approach to balancing local team needs with broader platform and business priorities.This role is expected to drive outcomes with impact across multiple product organizations and strategic company initiatives.This role is ideal for a deeply technical leader who wants to combine hands-on engineering, platform innovation, and AI-driven development practices to shape the future of how products are built and accessed.You will help define both the Product Access platform capabilities and the engineering practices that enable the next generation of cloud and AI-powered experiences—while influencing technical direction and engineering strategy across the company at enterprise scale.ResponsibilitiesLead the design and implementation of scalable Product Access and entitlement systems supporting cloud, API, and AI-driven productsDefine and drive the long-term technical strategy and engineering vision for Product Access platforms and access enforcement capabilitiesDrive the development of greenfield initiatives and foundational platform capabilities through hands-on prototyping and implementationServe as a technical accelerator across teams by contributing directly to critical projects and resolving complex engineering challengesChampion adoption of AI-assisted software development practices, including effective use of tools such as Claude Code to improve engineering productivity, software quality, and delivery velocityEstablish best practices for integrating AI-assisted workflows into software design, implementation, testing, and operational supportDesign systems supporting access decisions for both human and non-human actors, including services, automations, and AI agentsLead the evolution of entitlement and licensing platforms to support subscription, usage-based, and emerging AI-driven consumption modelsBuild highly scalable, low-latency, and resilient distributed systems with strong operational excellenceInfluence technical direction across multiple engineering organizations to drive adoption of shared platform capabilities, standards, and engineering practicesBuild strong partnerships across engineering, product, security, and business teams while constructively challenging decisions when needed to ensure long-term scalability and company-wide alignmentAct as a company-level technical leader, making decisions and recommendations based on what delivers the greatest overall customer and business impactPartner deeply with Product Management to shape product capabilities, monetization models, platform evolution, and long-term strategyMentor engineers through hands-on collaboration, code reviews, architecture guidance, and technical leadershipEvaluate emerging technologies and translate them into practical engineering capabilities and strategic advantages for the organizationInfluence engineering culture by promoting simplicity, developer experience, operational excellence, scalable architectures, and high-quality executionMinimum Qualifications12+ years of experience building large-scale distributed systems and platform servicesStrong hands-on software engineering background with the ability to contribute directly to architecture, design, and implementationProven experience building or evolving:Product Access platformsEntitlement and licensing systemsUsage-based or consumption-driven servicesDeep expertise in:Cloud-native architecturesDistributed systems designMicroservices and API designScalability, reliability, and operational excellenceRecognized technical expertise in distributed systems, platform engineering, or Product Access architecturesDemonstrated ability to shape engineering direction through technical vision, innovation, and influenceStrong experience driving engineering productivity improvements through modern tooling and developer platform investmentsPractical experience leveraging AI-assisted software development workflows and tools such as Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or similar technologies in real-world engineering environmentsFamiliarity with AI-enabled product patterns, agentic workflows, and API-driven consumption modelsProven ability to influence technical strategy and drive alignment across multiple organizations without direct authorityStrong executive communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to navigate complex organizational and technical tradeoffsDemonstrated ability to balance short-term delivery pressures with long-term platform and architectural sustainabilityStrong product and business acumen, with the ability to align technical decisions with customer and business outcomesPreferred QualificationsExperience with SaaS licensing and entitlement modelsExperience building platform services used across multiple engineering organizationsExposure to developer platforms, internal tooling, or engineering productivity initiativesExperience with Kubernetes, event-driven architectures, and modern cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP)Exposure to AI/ML-enabled products and modern AI application architecturesExperience driving enterprise-scale platform adoption and technical convergence initiativesLearn MoreAbout AutodeskWelcome to Autodesk! Amazing things are created every day with our software – from the greenest buildings and cleanest cars to the smartest factories and biggest hit movies. We help innovators turn their ideas into reality, transforming not only how things are made, but what can be made.We take great pride in our culture here at Autodesk – it’s at the core of everything we do. Our culture guides the way we work and treat each other, informs how we connect with customers and partners, and defines how we show up in the world.When you’re an Autodesker, you can do meaningful work that helps build a better world designed and made for all. Ready to shape the world and your future? Join us!BenefitsFrom health and financial benefits to time away and everyday wellness, we give Autodeskers the best, so they can do their best work. Learn more about our benefits in the U.S. by visiting Salary transparencySalary is one part of Autodesk’s competitive compensation package. For U.S.-based roles, we expect a starting base salary between $196,000 and $352,110. Offers are based on the candidate’s experience and geographic location, and may exceed this range. In addition to base salaries, our compensation package may include annual cash bonuses, commissions for sales roles, stock grants, and a comprehensive benefits package.Equal Employment OpportunityAt Autodesk, we're building a diverse workplace and an inclusive culture to give more people the chance to imagine, design, and make a better world. Autodesk is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected characteristic. We also consider for employment all qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with applicable law.BelongingWe take pride in cultivating a culture of belonging where everyone can thrive. Learn more here: Are you an existing contractor or consultant with Autodesk? Please search for open jobs and apply internally (not on this external site).SummaryLocation: San Francisco, CA, USA; Washington, USA - Remote; California, USA - Remote; Oregon, USA - Remote; Portland, OR, USAType: Full time