Senior Software Engineer - Search Runtime

<div class="content-intro"><p><strong data-stringify-type="bold">Why work at Nebius<br></strong>Nebius is leading a new era in cloud computing to serve the global AI economy. We create the tools and resources our customers need to solve real-world challenges and transform industries, without massive infrastructure costs or the need to build large in-house AI/ML teams. Our employees work at the cutting edge of AI cloud infrastructure alongside some of the most experienced and innovative leaders and engineers in the field.</p> <p><strong>Where we work<br></strong>Headquartered in Amsterdam and listed on Nasdaq, Nebius has a global footprint with R&amp;D hubs across Europe, North America, and Israel. The team of over 1400 employees includes more than 400 highly skilled engineers with deep expertise across hardware and software engineering, as well as an in-house AI R&amp;D team.</p></div><h3></h3> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]"><strong>The Product</strong></p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]">In a rapidly evolving world, trust in AI depends on AI agents being grounded in fresh, verified real-world data. Search is the foundation that makes this possible.</p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]">We are building an agent-native search platform designed specifically for AI systems rather than human users. Our product provides programmatic, low-latency, and observable search APIs that AI agents use to retrieve, filter, and reason over real-world information at scale.</p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]"><strong>The Role</strong></p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]">We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer to work on the runtime systems of a novel search engine tailored for agentic AI consumption.</p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]">In this role, you will focus on building low-latency, high-throughput systems that serve search queries in real time. You will work on the critical path of user-facing requests, where performance, predictability, and efficiency directly impact product quality. You will design and operate systems that handle thousands of requests per second under strict latency budgets, optimising every layer from request handling to data access and response assembly.</p> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]"><strong>In this position, your responsibility will be to</strong></p> <ul class="[li_&amp;]:mb-0 [li_&amp;]:mt-1 [li_&amp;]:gap-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)ul]:pb-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Design, implement, and operate core runtime services for serving search queries at scale</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Build and optimise request flows, including query processing, retrieval orchestration, and response assembly under strict latency budgets</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Develop systems that maintain performance and predictability under high load</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Optimise CPU, memory, and data access patterns in performance-critical paths</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Ensure reliability, observability, and predictability across production services</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Build well-tested systems with clear responsibilities and interaction contracts, while remaining flexible as architecture evolves</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Define and implement observability primitives, including structured logs, metrics, traces, and latency breakdowns</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Monitor throughput, latency, and resource usage, and drive improvements in performance and cost efficiency</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Collaborate with indexing and ML teams to integrate retrieval and ranking components, keeping ML logic decoupled from core system internals</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Support experimentation and iteration through controlled rollouts and rigorous benchmarking</li> </ul> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]"><strong>You may be a good fit if you:</strong></p> <ul class="[li&amp;]:mb-0 [li&amp;]:mt-1 [li_&amp;]:gap-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)ul]:pb-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Have 5+ years of experience as a software engineer working on production backend systems</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Have strong hands-on expertise in C++ or Rust in real-world, high-load services</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Have built and operated high-load, low-latency user-facing systems handling thousands of RPS under strict latency constraints</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Understand performance at a systems level — CPU, memory, networking, and data access</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Have operated your own code in production: deployed it, debugged incidents, and rolled back changes when necessary</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Think end-to-end about request flows rather than staying within isolated components</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Can balance correctness, latency, and development velocity, making pragmatic tradeoffs when scope or time requires</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Collaborate effectively across engineering, ML, and product teams, communicating clearly in cross-functional settings</li> </ul> <p class="font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]"><strong>Strong candidates may also have experience with:</strong></p> <ul class="[li&amp;]:mb-0 [li&amp;]:mt-1 [li_&amp;]:gap-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">DBMS internals (open source or SaaS) and cloud infrastructure</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">High-load web applications or large-scale APIs</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Performance-critical systems such as trading platforms or real-time data pipelines</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Low-level performance tuning and hardware-level optimisation</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Open-source contributions or active involvement in the engineering community</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Competitive programming or CTF participation</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">SHAD or similar advanced technical programmes</li> <li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Conference talks or technical publications</li> </ul> <p><span data-ccp-props="{}"><em data-stringify-type="italic">We conduct coding interviews as part of the process.</em></span></p><div class="content-conclusion"><p><strong>What we offer</strong>&nbsp;</p> <ul> <li>Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.</li> <li>Opportunities for professional growth within Nebius.</li> <li>Flexible working arrangements.</li> <li>A dynamic and collaborative work environment that values initiative and innovation.</li> </ul> <p><span data-contrast="auto">We’re growing and expanding our products every day. If you’re up to the challenge and are excited about AI and ML as much as we are, join us!</span></p></div>