Applied AI Engineer

About the role

Retell AI is currently transforming the customer experience landscape by applying first-principles thinking to reimagine the call center through cutting-edge voice AI technology. In this capacity, the hired individual will own the design, construction, and deployment of production AI voice applications that directly interact with enterprise customers and their internal systems. The role requires partnership with customer engineering teams to integrate Retell APIs and SDKs, solving complex and often ambiguous technical challenges that span the entire stack. You will be responsible for developing custom workflows, automations, and conversational AI experiences that meet specific enterprise requirements. This position is ideal for a builder who wants to move quickly, tackle hard technical problems, and see the direct impact of their work on a rapidly scaling voice AI company. You will collaborate daily with Engineering, Product, and Customer Success to ensure successful implementation and to help shape the future of enterprise AI voice platforms.

Key facts

What you'll do

Design, build, and deploy production AI voice applications that meet specific enterprise customer requirements and performance goals.

Partner with customer engineering teams to integrate Retell APIs and SDKs into their existing products and technical ecosystems.

Develop custom workflows, automations, and conversational AI experiences tailored to unique customer use cases.

Help customers architect scalable AI systems for production that are reliable, performant, and maintainable over the long term.

Debug production issues across APIs, webhooks, telephony, SIP, authentication mechanisms, latency constraints, and underlying infrastructure components.

Investigate AI behavior to improve prompt quality, system reliability, and overall performance in live customer environments.

Work directly in customer codebases when needed to diagnose issues, implement fixes, and ensure seamless integration of Retell voice AI.

Own the technical implementation of solutions from proof of concept through production launch and ongoing optimization.

Lead technical onboarding for enterprise customers, ensuring they understand the platform capabilities and limitations.

Serve as the primary technical advisor during implementation phases, guiding customers through complex integration scenarios.

Guide customers on AI best practices, architecture patterns, and deployment strategies that align with industry standards.

Help customers expand into new AI use cases across their organizations by identifying opportunities for growth and automation.

Partner closely with Product and Engineering teams to provide feedback that drives improvements to the Retell platform.

Turn customer feedback into actionable product improvements that enhance the overall voice AI experience for all users.

Help define and document best practices for deploying enterprise Voice AI, contributing to internal knowledge and external guidance.

Requirements

Must have a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field that provides a foundational understanding of software systems and algorithms.

Must possess 2+ years of software engineering or customer-facing technical experience building and deploying production applications that serve real users.

Must demonstrate strong programming skills in Python, TypeScript, or similar languages that are commonly used in modern software development.

Must have experience working with APIs, SDKs, and distributed systems to build robust and scalable applications.

Must have excellent debugging and problem-solving skills to diagnose and resolve complex issues in production environments.

Must have strong communication skills and the ability to work directly with technical customers, explaining technical concepts clearly and effectively.

Must be available to work standard business hours in the San Francisco Bay Area time zone to support customer needs and internal collaboration.

Nice to have

Experience working with voice AI, telephony systems, or conversational platforms is preferred but not required.

Familiarity with customer success workflows and a mindset focused on helping customers achieve their business goals.

Knowledge of modern CI/CD practices and infrastructure as code principles to support reliable deployments.

Experience contributing to open source projects or building public-facing technical demonstrations.

Practical notes

This is a full-time position based in our Redwood City headquarters.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship for this role.

The position does not require travel at this time based on current operational needs.

Candidates should apply promptly to ensure consideration before roles are filled, as we are growing quickly.