AI Engineer

Role Overview

Seeking an AI Engineer to help existing Java developers improve their productivity and code quality by effectively using AI coding tools.

This is a core software engineering position, not an AI product development or AI agent-building role. The ideal candidate is a strong Java engineer with hands-on experience using Claude Code and other AI coding assistants to design, develop, test, debug, and ship production-quality software.

The engineer will demonstrate how AI can be integrated into everyday development while maintaining ownership of code quality, correctness, security, and architectural decisions.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, and maintain production software in a Java/Spring Boot environment.
• Use Claude Code as a primary AI coding agent for scaffolding, refactoring, debugging, test generation, code review, and multi-step coding tasks.
• Leverage OpenAI Codex/Codex CLI, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, and similar tools where appropriate.
• Break down complex features into well-scoped tasks that can be delegated to AI coding tools.
• Critically review, validate, test, and integrate AI-generated code rather than blindly accepting suggestions.
• Develop and maintain automated unit, integration, and end-to-end tests, using AI tools to improve test coverage.
• Build internal tooling, prompts, project instructions, slash commands, MCP integrations, and agent playbooks to support AI-assisted development.
• Identify bugs, security issues, and architectural drift in both human-written and AI-generated code.
• Debug production issues and use AI tools to accelerate root-cause analysis.
• Collaborate with product managers, designers, and engineers to deliver well-architected solutions.
• Evaluate new AI coding tools and help establish effective development workflows, best practices, and guardrails.
• Contribute to technical design documents, architecture decisions, and estimation.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience, with 1+ years of proven experience leveraging AI coding tools in a development workflow.
• Strong proficiency in Java and Spring / Spring Boot or an equivalent enterprise Java stack.
• Hands-on, real-world experience using Claude Code extensively in software development—not just casual or occasional use.
• Experience with other AI coding assistants or agents, such as GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or OpenAI Codex/Codex CLI.
• Strong fundamentals in data structures, algorithms, and system design.
• Solid understanding of backend development, including:
  • REST/gRPC API design
  • Relational and/or NoSQL databases
  • Messaging and queues, such as Kafka or RabbitMQ
  • Microservices architecture
• Strong understanding of software engineering best practices, including Git, CI/CD, automated testing, and code reviews.
• Ability to critically evaluate AI-generated code for accuracy, correctness, security, performance, and maintainability.
• Ability to explain how AI tools have been used to improve development speed and quality in real projects.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with Python, TypeScript/JavaScript, or Go.
• Experience creating CLAUDE.md project instructions, slash commands, MCP integrations, or AI-assisted engineering playbooks.
• Experience helping other developers adopt AI coding tools effectively.
• Experience working with production systems and resolving complex technical issues.

What We’re Looking For

• A strong Java software engineer who uses AI tools as part of their daily development workflow.
• Someone who can demonstrate measurable productivity improvements through AI-assisted coding.
• A creative problem solver who knows how to break down work, guide AI tools, and validate the final output.
• A team player who can collaborate with developers and help them adopt AI tools more effectively.
• Someone who understands that AI-generated code still requires engineering judgment, testing, and accountability.

Additional Details

• Industry Background: No specific industry required.
• Soft Skills: Team player, creative, strong communication, and collaborative mindset.
• Primary Technical Stack: Java, Spring Boot, Claude Code, Codex.
• Work Arrangement: Bellevue, WA — onsite only.
• Hiring Need: New addition to the Network Core Operations engineering team.