Principal Software Engineer | Microsoft Careers

Microsoft

Quick summary

Work type
On-site
Location
US
Salary
$142,800–$274,800 / yr
Posted
3 days ago
Closes
Nov 29, 2026

Market check

Salary context

Above market

How this pay compares to similar roles

Similar $193k
This role $209k
$124k most similar roles pay here $291k

This role pays more than 73% of similar roles. Most pay $174,200–$211,775 — the shaded band above. At the midpoint, this role pays about $209k versus about $193k 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 728 open roles on FindRole.

Listed pay typically runs $119,800–$234,700 across 664 roles with salary data.

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At a glance

TL;DR · Principal Software Engineer | Microsoft Careers

As a Senior Software Engineer on the AI Frameworks team at Microsoft, you will work closely with ML researchers and hardware engineers to develop cutting-edge software for next-generation supercomputers and Maia AI accelerators. Your daily tasks include collaborating with partners to evaluate performance and quality of state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs), building tools for LLM optimization validation, and performing software development in Python, C/C++, and CUDA. You will also identify requirements, scope solutions, and estimate workloads for complex projects. This role requires expertise in training or serving deep neural networks and experience with ML system optimization to tackle the challenges of scaling AI model training and inference on novel hardware architectures.

What you'll do

  • Develop software tools to support validation and exploration of LLM optimization technologies.
  • Engage with partners to evaluate performance and quality for state-of-the-art LLMs at different scales.
  • Perform hands-on software development in model scripting languages like Python, C/C++, CUDA.
  • Identify requirements and scope solutions for AI system projects.
  • Collaborate with ML researchers and engineers to optimize large-scale AI model training and inference.

What we're looking for

  • Extensive experience in developing AI software for large-scale model training and inference.
  • Proficient in Python, C/C++, and CUDA for software development in AI systems.
  • Strong background in collaborating with ML researchers and engineers to optimize performance.
  • Experience in evaluating state-of-the-art LLMs at various scales and building validation tools.
  • Demonstrated ability to solve complex technical problems and drive efficient AI system development.

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