Principal Software Engineer, CoreAI

Job ID: 200007545Posted: 2026-08-10Location: United States, Washington, RedmondSalary: USD $142,800 - $274,800 per yearEmployment type: Full-TimeWork site: 3 days / week in-officeRole type: Individual ContributorTravel: Less than 25%Profession: Software EngineeringDiscipline: Software EngineeringCompany: MicrosoftOverviewCore AI is at the forefront of Microsoft’s mission to redefine how software is built and experienced. We are responsible for building the foundational platforms, services, programming models, and developer experiences that power the next generation of applications using Generative AI. Our work enables developers and enterprises to harness the full potential of AI to create intelligent, adaptive, and transformative software.The Agentic Core Services Team is responsible for building the cloud-native, distributed platform that powers the development, execution, and management of agentic applications at scale. Our mission is to provide the foundational infrastructure and runtime systems that enable developers to build intelligent, autonomous, and enterprise-grade AI agents with confidence and agility.In this role, you will help define the future of software and application development. You will shape how developers interact with our platform—from programming models and user experiences to the design of a managed, distributed runtime that orchestrates agent-based AI applications at scale with enterprise-grade guarantees. You’ll work at the cutting edge of AI research, collaborating with some of the brightest minds in generative AI, and integrating the latest breakthroughs in multi-modal capabilities (text, audio, video) into real-world agentic applications.At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. We live this mission every day through a culture that embraces a growth mindset, values diverse perspectives, and encourages continuous learning. We believe in creating an environment where individuals bring their best selves to work, collaborate openly, and build technology that makes a meaningful impact. Join us and help shape the future of the world.ResponsibilitiesShape the Product Vision: Define and influence the product roadmap by aligning technical strategy with business goals and customer needs.Drive Strategic Clarity: Leverage data-driven insights and competitive intelligence to inform product direction, identify opportunities, and guide decision-making.Architect for Scale and Sustainability: Design and evolve durable, scalable system architectures that balance long-term maintainability with short-term delivery needs, making thoughtful engineering trade-offs.Foster Engineering Alignment: Work with the engineering teams and partner organizations by driving clarity, alignment, and shared ownership of technical direction.Deliver Cohesive End-to-End Experiences: Collaborate closely with partner teams—including experience, SDK, and platform groups—to ensure seamless integration and delivery of features across the stack.Build Foundational Capabilities: Contribute to and lead the development of core platform components and reusable building blocks that accelerate team velocity and product innovation.Champion Customer-Centric Development: Engage directly with customers and product teams to capture feedback, understand demand signals, and refine product messaging—ensuring the voice of the customer shapes product evolution.Lead Live Site Excellence: Drive operational excellence in managing and operating large-scale distributed systems with a high bar for service-level agreements (SLAs). Lead root cause analyses (RCAs) for key live site incidents and outages, identify systemic improvements, and set high standards for reliability and performance.QualificationsRequired Qualifications:Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, or equivalent experience.Other Requirements:Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two yearsPreferred Qualifications:Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 12+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 15+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR equivalent experience.Software Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year. Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:Software Engineering IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $165,600 - $296,400 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $220,800 - $331,200 per year. Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.