Senior Software Engineering Manager, AI & Developer Productivity

Instacart

146d • $216,000 - $289,000

About The Position

We’re looking for a Senior Engineering Manager to lead our AI Productivity and Developer Experience teams - two core teams responsible for transforming how engineers build software at Instacart. You’ll oversee high-impact projects like AI-powered code review, LLM tooling, local dev platforms, and CI/test automation. Your work will directly improve engineering velocity, reduce friction, and embed AI into daily developer workflows. This role is ideal for someone who thrives at the intersection of infra, product, and AI - and is excited to lead talented teams shaping the future of internal tools at scale.

Requirements

• 5+ years of engineering management experience, with at least 2+ years leading teams in infrastructure, AI/ML, or developer tooling.
• Strong product instincts - ability to balance technical depth with usability and adoption.
• Strong technical background—able to engage in architecture reviews, drive technical direction, and make informed tradeoffs.
• Hands-on experience building or integrating AI/LLM-based tools into production or internal systems.
• Proven ability to lead high-impact teams, deliver complex projects, and drive adoption of internal platforms at scale.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving environment with evolving priorities and high expectations.

Nice To Haves

• Prior experience leading both Developer Experience and AI-focused teams.
• Familiarity with tools like Copilot, Cursor, OpenAI APIs, Glean, or similar platforms.
• Experience managing relationships with AI or infra vendors and evaluating platform partnerships.
• Experience scaling developer productivity across 100+ engineers in a high-growth environment.

Responsibilities

• Own and drive the roadmap for Instacart’s internal AI tooling and developer platforms.
• Lead two high-impact teams (AI Productivity & Developer Experience) working on systems like AI PR review agents, LLM gateways, CI/test performance, and local dev environments.
• Partner with senior engineers, TPMs, and leaders across Infrastructure, ML, and Product to drive alignment and adoption at scale.
• Navigate ambiguity, shifting priorities, and high expectations.
• Build and grow a high-performing, mission-driven team that thrives on impact, iteration, and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with AI in software development.

Benefits

• Highly market-competitive compensation and benefits.
• Remote work flexibility.
• New hire equity grant and annual refresh grants.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees