Principal Software Engineer (Platform Team)

The job

LIVE Employer public job feed (private-sector employer) Source: the employer's public careers feed · Data: listed 2026-05-21

Job description

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

PRINCIPAL SOFTWARE ENGINEER (PLATFORM TEAM) 

The Platform Team builds the foundational tooling and security infrastructure that empowers every team at SpaceX to harness AI effectively. This team creates secure, scalable gateways and proxy systems that allow engineers and operators across the company to write code faster, perform advanced data analysis, connect AI to their daily tools and problems, and turn ideas into deployed solutions with confidence. By onboarding new frontier models, expanding compute capacity, optimizing proxy efficiency for logging and control, and building shared prompts, skills, and infrastructure, this team unlocks reliable, high-impact AI capabilities across the entire organization. 

As a Principal Software Engineer for SpaceX's AI platform, you will set the technical vision and serve as a senior leader and entrepreneurial force for the leanest and most effective applied use of AI at SpaceX. You will architect platforms that convert engineering know-how into tested software, automation, and reliable data stores at massive scale while pioneering risk-mitigation tools such as intelligent code review and PR assistants. Current systems are built with Docker containers acting as secure gateways and proxies that integrate with any cloud compute provider and multiple frontier model providers. Your strategic leadership will be critical to accelerating SpaceX production and development by making trustworthy AI a core capability for every team at SpaceX. 

RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Define and drive the long-term technical vision and architecture for SpaceX’s AI platform and security infrastructure
• Lead high-impact initiatives with full ownership over strategy, design, implementation, and successful company-wide rollout
• Oversee onboarding of frontier models, massive compute scaling, and continuous optimization of proxy systems for security, efficiency, logging, and control
• Lead adoption efforts at scale — establishing standards, mentoring senior engineers, building reusable assets, and driving cultural change toward AI-first workflows
• Proactively identify and execute on the highest-leverage opportunities to turn ideas into production software, trained models, and automated systems with managed, reliable compute
• Invent and scale advanced risk-mitigation capabilities (AI code review, automated PR tools, safety systems) that protect and accelerate the business
• Establish best practices and technical direction for lean, secure, and maximally effective applied AI across the company
• Serve as a key technical advisor and collaborator with leadership and cross-functional teams to align platform capabilities with SpaceX’s most ambitious goals 

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, or other engineering discipline and 7+ years of professional experience building and scaling production platforms; OR 9+ years of professional experience building and scaling production platforms in lieu of a degree
• Experience designing and operating large-scale AI/ML platforms, internal developer platforms, or mission-critical infrastructure  

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE: 

• Demonstrated success architecting and scaling AI gateways, secure proxy layers, or enterprise MLOps platforms that serve hundreds of users
• Expert-level experience with Docker/Kubernetes ecosystems, zero-trust security models, and multi-cloud/frontier-model integrations
• Deep expertise in MLOps, distributed compute, model lifecycle management, and building highly observable, reliable systems
• Strong history of enabling organization-wide impact through technical leadership, mentoring, and creation of shared platforms and standards
• Entrepreneurial leadership with a proven ability to spot and deliver transformative solutions
• Mastery of Python and broad expertise across modern languages and tooling
• Extensive experience with infrastructure-as-code, advanced observability, and building platforms that others love to use
• Deep passion for responsible AI, developer velocity, and converting deep engineering knowledge into reliable automation at planetary scale 

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.  

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com. 

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Field: Technology Sub-niche: Software engineering All jobs at SpaceX Jobs in Texas Jobs in Bastrop, TX Texas state guide

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About the role

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The city

Bastrop, TX is not one of the cities with its own page in our guides, so here is the state: Texas.

The state economy in brief

Texas is in the South region (West South Central division) and has 30,188,424 residents (the 2nd largest of the 50 states and DC by population), with a median age of 35.6. Its economy produced about $3,032,038 million in the latest four quarters (BEA), 2nd among states and DC, equal to $100,437 per resident.

Jobs and the labour market

The unemployment rate was 4.4% in 2026M09, which is 38th lowest of 51 (1st is the lowest). Employers had job openings equal to 4.1% of employment, 23rd highest of 51, a measure of how hard it is to hire. The median wage across all occupations is $48,620 a year ($23.38 an hour), 5% below the national median ($48,620 against $50,980).

What people do and what it pays

The occupations with the most jobs in Texas are Fast Food and Counter Workers (460,530 jobs, median $27,740); General and Operations Managers (431,310 jobs, median $103,230); Retail Salespersons (341,640 jobs, median $30,800); Customer Service Representatives (337,170 jobs, median $40,420); Home Health and Personal Care Aides (329,590 jobs, median $24,230). Among occupations with at least 2,000 jobs, the best paid are Cardiologists (median $410,150); Radiologists (median $319,320); Physicians, All Other (median $269,800). Compared with the nation, the state is most specialised in management (1.2 times the national share of workers) and installation, maintenance, and repair (1.2 times the national share of workers).

Cost of living, taxes and workplace rules

Prices are below the national average in Texas: the regional price parity is 97.1 against 100 for the whole country (27th lowest of 51). Median gross rent is $1,403 a month and the median household income $78,476, so a year of rent equals 21.5% of income; the median home value is $283,800. The state minimum wage is $7.25 (the higher of state and federal rates applies to most workers). State income tax on wages: No state tax on wages. It is a right-to-work state, meaning workers cannot be required to pay union dues as a condition of employment. It has no state paid family and medical leave programme in our source.

People and commuting

17.6% of residents were born abroad and 33.8% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Among workers, 71.4% drive alone, 0.9% use public transit and 14.4% work from home; 16.9% commute 45 minutes or more.

State guide: Texas →

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Career paths

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Cybersecurity (512) Data, analytics and AI (2461) Cloud, IT and infrastructure (743) Product management (570)

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The employer

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Other open jobs at SpaceX

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Same sub-niche: Software engineering

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FAQ

What is the Principal Software Engineer (Platform Team) job at SpaceX?

A private-sector role in technology (software engineering) listed 172 days ago. The full description is on this page and on the employer's page.

Where is this job?

Bastrop, TX.

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How old is this listing?

It was posted on 2026-05-21 (172 days ago). Jobs older than 90 days are not shown.

Are there similar jobs?

Yes: browse software engineering jobs in Texas.

Sources and terms

• Job data: SpaceX careers page public feed (listing dated 2026-05-21). The job disappears from this site when it disappears from the source.
• Wages and projections: BLS OEWS (May 2025) and Employment Projections 2025–35.
• City and county figures: Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024, BEA, BLS QCEW and LAUS, NASA POWER climatology; distances from Census Gazetteer coordinates.

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Sources

• BLS OEWS (wages and employment by occupation, May 2025)
• BLS Employment Projections 2025–35
• BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
• BLS JOLTS
• BLS State and Metro Area Employment
• Census Bureau American Community Survey (via Census Reporter)
• BEA GDP by state and Regional Price Parities
• IRS 2026 tax adjustments
• U.S. Department of Labor, minimum wage by state
• Tax Foundation state income tax rates 2026
• USAJOBS
• USCIS
• U.S. Department of State, visas
• NASA POWER climatology
• GeoNames / Census Gazetteer (coordinates)