Senior Staff Software Engineer, AI/ML Security

Google•Kirkland, WA

5d•$262,000 - $364,000

About The Position

Google Cloud software engineers build technologies that help users connect, explore, and interact with information. They work on projects critical to Google Cloud, anticipate customer needs, take ownership, innovate, and tackle problems across the full stack. As a Senior Staff Software Engineer for AI/ML Security, you will serve as the primary technical visionary for Model Armor and Sensitive Data Protection, helping shape the strategy to secure LLMs against prompt injection, jailbreaking, and data exfiltration. You will address architectural challenges by integrating filter-based defenses into scalable, observable, and explainable distributed systems that protect enterprise customers at Google Cloud scale. You will navigate ambiguity, drive overarching business strategy, and lead high-stakes initiatives across Google. The role calls for negotiating and building consensus among researchers and engineers and translating security goals into measurable solutions for generative AI. Individual pay is determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. The listed U.S. compensation is $262,000–$364,000, plus a 25% bonus target, equity, and benefits.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent practical experience.
8 years of experience in software development.
7 years of experience leading technical project strategy and ML design, and working with industry-scale ML infrastructure, such as model deployment, model evaluation, data processing, debugging, or fine-tuning.
5 years of experience in one or more of the following: speech/audio, reinforcement learning, ML infrastructure, or another ML specialization.
5 years of experience with design and architecture, and with testing or launching software products.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or PhD in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field.
8 years of experience with data structures and algorithms.
5 years of experience in a technical leadership role leading project teams and setting technical direction.
5 years of programming experience in Java.
Experience with AI model security, adversarial machine learning, or data privacy, such as prompt injection defenses or LLM introspection.
Experience delivering enterprise-grade security products that achieve measurable business and customer outcomes.

Responsibilities

Define and drive the long-term technical goal and architectural strategy for Model Armor and Sensitive Data Protection, helping Google Cloud remain a leader in generative AI security.
Lead the design and implementation of highly scalable, low-latency systems to detect and mitigate threats such as prompt injection, jailbreaking, and sensitive data leakage across enterprise environments.
Align security roadmaps across Google Cloud, DeepMind, and other product areas while navigating constraints such as latency, cost, and global compliance.
Resolve technical disagreements among engineers and researchers and build consensus to deliver high-stakes, cross-functional objectives across multiple time zones.
Partner with executive leadership to evaluate ML security research and provide technical mentorship to staff and executive engineers.