below marketmost similar roles pay hereabove market
This role pays more than
74%
of similar roles. Most pay
$174,600–$233,953
— the blue band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$231k
versus about
$204k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is a global technology leader producing software, hardware, and cloud services including Windows, Office 365, Azure cloud platform, Xbox gaming, and Surface devices. Industry: Software & Cloud Computing
Microsoft currently has
694 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$119,800–$234,700
across 651 roles with salary data.
The Principal Software Engineer - CoreAI (Foundry Observability) joins the Observability group to build core services for monitoring, evaluating, and optimizing AI agent performance. This role involves leading the design, development, and delivery of large-scale AI services and platforms with a focus on scalability, reliability, security, and performance. The engineer will drive end-to-end ownership of services from architecture through deployment, while mentoring engineers and leading design discussions. Key responsibilities include driving innovation in observability, automation, and deployment safety through reusable frameworks. Candidates must possess technical engineering experience in languages such as C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, or Go. The work addresses the technical challenge of providing foundational platforms and developer experiences for the next generation of applications using Generative AI.
What does a Software Engineer earn?
Median $197400 from 2576 postings across 150 companies.
Lead the design, development, and delivery of large-scale AI services and platforms.
Drive end-to-end ownership of services from architecture and implementation through deployment and monitoring.
Provide technical leadership for complex initiatives, including architecture decisions and dependency management.
Champion engineering excellence through best practices in system design, testing, security, and code quality.
Drive innovation in observability, automation, and deployment safety through reusable platforms and frameworks.
Engage with customers to gather feedback and resolve complex technical issues.
Mentor engineers by leading code reviews, design discussions, and fostering a culture of continuous learning.
What we're looking for
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 8+ years of technical engineering experience with coding in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python (or equivalent experience).
Ability to meet Microsoft, customer, and/or government security screening requirements, including a Microsoft Cloud Background Check.
Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 12+ years of technical engineering experience with coding in C++, C#, Go, Java, Python, or equivalent experience (preferred).
8+ years of technical engineering experience designing and delivering highly available, large-scale cloud services and distributed systems (preferred).
4+ years of technical engineering experience with machine learning or Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems (preferred).
Python
C++
C#
Java
Go
JavaScript
C
Generative AI
Machine Learning
Distributed Systems
Cloud Services
System Design
Observability
Security
Privacy
Compliance
Azure AI Search
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
C#
Java
C++
Python
Rust
Distributed Systems
Cloud-Native Architecture
Vector Databases
Information Retrieval
Telemetry
Monitoring
SaaS
Networking
Storage Systems
Azure SQL
SQL
C#
Python
Java
C++
C
JavaScript
Distributed Systems
SRE
Schema Design
Data Migration
Performance Tuning
Capacity Planning
geo‑replication
Failover Groups
Root Cause Analysis
Telemetry
Automation