Founding Lead Software Architect - Physical AI Infrastructure

Glacian•Pittsburgh, PA

6h•Hybrid

About The Position

Glacian is building the intelligence layer that allows physical infrastructure to understand itself, predict its future state, and autonomously optimize its operation. Our mission is to solve one of the most important bottlenecks facing the AI economy: power, cooling, and operational efficiency inside data centers and other mission-critical environments. We are looking for an architect who wants to lead this effort. You will work directly with the founding team to architect and build the first commercial version of Glacian’s Physical AI platform. You will make foundational decisions that influence the next decade of the company. You will build software that directly interfaces with physical infrastructure operating in real-world environments where reliability matters. You will help transform years of research, modeling, controls engineering, and AI development into a production system capable of scaling across mission-critical facilities. If you enjoy solving hard technical problems at the intersection of software, physics, controls, and AI, this role was designed for you. Glacian is a Physical AI software company solving the data center power and cooling bottleneck. We provide a deterministic safety and intelligence layer that fuses high-fidelity physics-based digital twins with meta-reinforcement learning to understand the complex physics, environment, and industrial systems of data centers. This is an opportunity to become the founding architect of a new category of technology: Physical AI for critical infrastructure. Glacian is at a unique inflection point. Our underlying technology is built upon years of research, physics-based modeling, optimization, and real-world validation. We are now transitioning from proven technology to commercial deployment, and we are looking for the architect who will help transform that foundation into a scalable software platform capable of redefining how data centers and other mission-critical environments are operated. As a Founding Lead Software Architect, you will serve as the technical leader responsible for defining the software architecture, technology strategy, and foundational engineering principles of Glacian's Physical AI platform. You will work directly with the founders to transform years of research in digital twins, optimization, controls, and artificial intelligence into a production platform capable of operating within mission-critical infrastructure environments.

Requirements

BS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering or related field.
7+ years building and deploying production software systems.
Expert-level software architecture and system design skills.
Strong hands-on software development experience.
Deep understanding of distributed systems, APIs, databases, networking, and modern software engineering practices.
Strong proficiency in Python and experience with C++, Go, or Rust.
Experience with Linux-based systems, edge computing, PostgreSQL, and real-time data architectures.
Experience developing software that interfaces with physical systems, industrial infrastructure, or operational technology environments.
Familiarity with BACnet, Modbus, MQTT, OPC-UA, SNMP, or similar protocols.
Understanding of controls, automation systems, optimization engines, or complex physical systems.

Nice To Haves

Data center infrastructure, industrial IoT, or critical infrastructure environments.
HVAC systems, building automation systems, energy management, or industrial controls.
Digital twins, simulation frameworks, optimization engines, or autonomous control systems.
Machine learning, reinforcement learning, or AI systems deployed in production.
Real-time telemetry, edge computing, and time-series data platforms.
Startup or founding-engineer experience building products from concept through commercial deployment.
Combine strong software architecture skills with a practical understanding of real-world physical systems.
Technically exceptional and highly hands-on.
Fast-moving, execution-oriented, and comfortable making decisions with incomplete information.
Self-driven, accountable, and energized by ownership.
Collaborative, low ego, and focused on solving difficult problems.
Equally comfortable discussing software architecture, AI systems, industrial infrastructure, and customer needs.
Motivated by building technology that creates measurable impact in the physical world.
Wants to create technology that matters and leave a lasting impact on the future of intelligent infrastructure.

Responsibilities

Define and guide the architectural vision for Glacian's Physical AI platform.
Architect and develop software across the full technology stack including edge systems, backend services, APIs, databases, and user-facing applications.
Design scalable telemetry, time-series, and real-time data processing systems.
Develop integrations with building automation systems, HVAC equipment, sensors, and industrial infrastructure.
Transform digital twins, optimization engines, and AI models into production-ready software.
Establish engineering standards, observability, testing strategies, deployment processes, and architectural best practices.
Collaborate with founders, researchers, customers, and industry partners to align technology with business objectives.
Participate in technical hiring and help shape Glacian's engineering culture.
Architect, design, and build the core components of Glacian's Physical AI platform.
Establish the architectural principles, technology stack, system boundaries, and engineering standards that will support future products, customer deployments, and company growth.
Develop production-grade software that transforms digital twins, optimization engines, and AI technologies into systems customers can confidently deploy and operate in mission-critical environments.
Design, develop, and maintain software across the full technology stack, including edge computing systems, backend services, APIs, databases, and user-facing applications.
Contribute hands-on code daily while balancing long-term architectural decisions with near-term product delivery.
Design and implement scalable systems for ingesting, processing, storing, and analyzing high-frequency operational data from real-world data center infrastructure, including DCIM systems, building management systems, environmental sensors, and HVAC control systems.
Build robust telemetry pipelines, time-series data architectures, and monitoring capabilities that enable reliable operation of autonomous infrastructure systems.
Develop software interfaces and integration frameworks that connect Glacian's platform to building automation systems, HVAC equipment, environmental sensors, industrial control systems, and data center infrastructure.
Work with protocols such as BACnet, Modbus, MQTT, OPC-UA, and other industry-standard communication technologies to enable secure and reliable interoperability.
Partner closely with researchers and domain experts to transform digital twins, optimization algorithms, and AI models into production-ready software.
Ensure that advanced modeling and decision-making capabilities are implemented in a manner that is scalable, maintainable, explainable, and operationally reliable.
Establish and maintain best engineering practices across the platform, including reliability patterns, monitoring and observability, testing strategy, deployment processes, and documentation standards.
Build the operational foundation that keeps the platform stable, auditable, and maintainable as both the codebase and the engineering team grow.
Help establish the technical culture, engineering practices, and architectural standards that will guide future growth.
Participate in technical hiring, mentor engineers when appropriate, and contribute to creating a high-performance engineering organization focused on speed, quality, ownership, and execution.