Member of Technical Staff (Forward Deployed Engineer, Applied AI)

Location New York City Employment Type Full time Department Platform & Infrastructure Introduction At Perplexity AI, the API Platform powers AI-native search, retrieval, and automation for some of the world’s most innovative companies. Our Support team is the frontline for developer and enterprise success—ensuring that customers can build fast, reliable, and differentiated products on top of API’s capabilities. We don’t just answer tickets—we partner deeply with customers, Product, and Engineering to architect solutions, debug complex integrations, and influence the roadmap based on real-world developer needs. About the Role We’re looking for a Forward-Deployed Engineer to be a hands‑on technical partner for our API customers. This is a deeply technical, customer‑facing role—equal parts solution architect, developer advocate, and technical program manager. You’ll work end‑to‑end with developers, product teams, and executives at our customers’ organizations—from designing their API‑powered architecture to optimizing query performance and implementing new features. You’ll also contribute to internal tooling, docs, and demos that make API adoption easier and more impactful. This role is ideal for TPMs , solutions engineers , or software engineers who have moved into customer‑facing work but still want to build, prototype, and problem‑solve daily. Key Responsibilities Serve as the dedicated technical partner for strategic API Platform customers, guiding them through architecture design, integration, and optimization. Troubleshoot API performance, grounding quality, and integration challenges—diving directly into code and logs when needed. Prototype example integrations, search workflows, and demos to accelerate adoption and inspire customer innovation. Collaborate with Engineering and Product to resolve high‑priority escalations, ensuring minimal downtime and maximum reliability. Capture and synthesize customer feedback to improve API features, SDKs, and developer experience. Maintain deep familiarity with the API Platform’s latest capabilities, competitive positioning, and best practices, and use this knowledge to advise customers. What We’re Looking For Must-Haves 5+ years in technical support engineering , software engineering , or solutions engineering , with direct application development experience. Strong API integration skills—able to design and debug REST/JSON payloads, manage auth flows, and optimize latency. Proven track record of diagnosing complex technical issues across distributed systems, APIs, and customer environments. Excellent communicator who can work with both developer teams and non‑technical stakeholders. Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or equivalent hands‑on experience. Nice-to-Haves Experience working with search, retrieval‑augmented generation (RAG), or AI/ML APIs. Background in developer tools or platform engineering, especially in high‑scale or low‑latency environments. Strong familiarity with Python or JavaScript for building integrations, SDKs, or prototypes. History of working at startups or small teams where you owned customer projects end‑to‑end. Why Join Us The API Platform is quickly becoming a core infrastructure layer for AI‑powered search and automation. As a Customer Success Engineer, you’ll help shape how our customers—from startups to Fortune 500s—bring their most ambitious ideas to life. You’ll be joining a fast‑moving, high‑impact team where your technical skills, creativity, and ability to bridge product and customer needs will directly influence both the API Platform’s roadmap and its market success. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including experience and expertise, and may vary from the amounts listed above. Equity: In addition to the base salary, equity may be part of the total compensation package. Benefits: Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance for you and your dependents. Includes a 401(k) plan. #J-18808-Ljbffr Pantera Capital