Staff Backend Engineer (AI & Knowledge Systems) (Santa Monica)

Join to apply for the Staff Backend Engineer (AI & Knowledge Systems) role at Demand.io

Base Pay Range

$250,000.00/yr - $360,000.00/yr

Additional Compensation Types

Annual Bonus and Stock options

The Opportunity

Demand.io is a profitable, founder‑led consumer AI commerce player driving $1B+ in annual GMV. We are the team behind SimplyCodes (the #1 AI‑powered savings tool) and Product.ai (emerging deterministic AI shopping assistant).

We are seeking a Staff Backend Engineer to operate as a Technical Lead & Systems Architect . This is not a standard IC role; it is a high‑leverage position for a builder who wants ֆown the technical roadmap for the “nervous system” of a next‑generation intelligence company.

We are pivoting from “Search” (finding links) to “Adjudication” (verifying truth). This requires a fundamental re‑architecture of how we ingest, process, and serve data. You will move beyond building features to architecting the neuro‑symbolic intelligence engine that powers our Here's entire ecosystem, setting the technical standards for the wider engineering team.

What You Will Build

• Massive‑Scale Knowledge Infrastructure: Architect and build the intelligent, fault‑tolerant backend for our Commerce Knowledge Graph. Design distributed ingestion pipelines that process millions of data points, ensuring our AI agents have access to high‑fidelity, verified structured data.
• AI‑Native API Architecture: Design and implement high‑performance, real‑time APIs (gRPC, REST) optimized for agent‑to‑agent communication. Build the interfaces that allow menor Saison Reasoning Engine to interact with our Transaction Layer with <100ms latency.
• Automated Verification Systems: Lead the technical design of event‑driven systems that verify data truth at scale. Replace manual heuristics with deterministic logic and LLM‑driven workflows, creating a self‑healing data ecosystem.
• Living System Documentation: Enact our mandate for Strategic Data Architecture. Create living technical blueprints and schematic designs that serve as the source of truth for both human engineers and AI collaborators.

Who You Are

We prioritize first‑principles thinking over pedigree.

• You are a Staff‑Level Architect. Graduate from “how do I build this?” to “should we build this, and how will it scale in 3 years?” Proactively identify technical debt and architectural risks before they become blockers.
• You are a First‑Principles Thinker. Reject playbook reasoning. Deconstruct problems to fundamental technical constraints and build from there, rather than relying on lazy analogies.
• You are Cloud‑Native. Have deep, hands‑on experience scaling applications on GCP using Kubernetes and serverless patterns. Understand the nuances of distributed systems.
• You possess Extreme Agency. Do not wait for permission. Feel a deep, personal responsibility for the quality and resilience of your systems. Self‑started and momentum‑creating.
• You are AI‑Fluent. View AI as a foundational layer of the stack, not just a tool. Know how to architect systems that integrate with LLMs and retrieval‑augmented generation (RAG) workflows.

Compensation & Ownership

• Base Salary: $250,000 – $360,000. Target the 80th+ percentile to attract 1‑of‑1 talent. Base covers life; equity builds freedom.
• Profit Participation (PIUs): Gain true ownership and share of company operating profit. Earn real cash flow distributions as we grow, not just at theoretical exit. Structure is tax‑ установить to maximize take‑home wealth. Sortiment\
• Benefits: 100% premium coverage for you and family, daily catered lunches, unlimited PTO you are expected to use.

How to Apply

We don't use cover letters or ATS keyword bots. We measure logic, not keywords.

The Process

• The Input: Instead ed phone screen, answer 5 short questions via video (asynchronous).
• The Context: High‑signal prompts designed to test how you prioritize and compress complexity. No rehearsal required. Clear thinking over production value.
• The Trade: If your signal is clear, skip the generic recruiter screen and move straight to a peer‑level conversation with the team.

Seniority Level

• Mid‑Senior level

Employment Type

• Full‑time

Job Function

• Engineering
• Information Technology

Industries

• Technology
• Information and Internet
• Consumer Services
• Software Development

Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at Demand.io by 2x.