Principal AI Software Engineer

About Gusto

Gusto is a modern, online people platform that helps small businesses take care of their teams. On top of full-service payroll, Gusto offers health insurance, 401(k)s, expert HR, and team management tools. Today, Gusto offices in Denver, San Francisco, and New York serve more than 400,000 businesses nationwide.

Our mission is to create a world where work empowers a better life, and it starts right here at Gusto. That’s why we’re committed to building a collaborative and inclusive workplace, both physically and virtually. Learn more about our Total Rewards philosophy.

About The Role

Gusto is looking for an experienced Principal AI Software Engineer to lead the design, development, and deployment of AI solutions that enhance our customer experience. Our mission is to deliver consistently exceptional Customer and Advocate experiences, at scale, across every touchpoint. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in artificial intelligence, and software engineering, with proven expertise in applying these technologies to improve customer interactions and satisfaction. Be a change agent on how Gusto leverages AI to better serve customers.

About The Team

The Unified Service Platform’s mission is to create seamless connected, efficient and delightful experiences that empower our customers (internal and external) to make informed decisions and be supported throughout their journey. This team operates as a startup-within-a-startup with a high level of ownership around specific problems to solve for our customers.

Here’s What You’ll Do Day-to-day

• Design, develop, and deploy AI-powered applications to enhance customer and advocate experiences.
• Collaborate with product management, design teams and customer experience teams to understand customer pain points, come up with solutions, prototype, iterate, and launch daily.
• Contribute to architectural decisions and best practices for AI-driven systems.
• Stay on top of industry trends in AI and machine learning, integrating relevant advancements into our solutions.
• Mentor and provide guidance to engineers, helping them grow their expertise in AI and software development.

Here’s What We're Looking For

• 12+ years of software development experience, with a strong background in Full Stack or Backend development.
• Passion for AI-driven technologies. Experience with AI, machine learning, or LLMs is highly preferred.
• Proficiency in modern programming languages and frameworks (e.g., Python, Ruby, TypeScript, React, etc.).
• Experience building scalable, high-performance distributed systems.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to navigate ambiguity in a fast-paced environment.
• A startup/founder mindset – comfortable with ambiguity, risk-taking, and operating in a high-intensity environment.

Our cash compensation amount for this role is targeted at $222,000-$256,000 in Denver, $241,000-$277,000 for Los Angeles and most remote locations, $261,000-$299,000 for San Francisco, New York, and Seattle. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including candidate experience, level, and expertise and may vary from the amounts listed above.

Gusto has physical office spaces in Denver, San Francisco, and New York City. Employees who are based in those locations will be expected to work from the office on designated days approximately 2-3 days _per week (or more depending on role).

__Note: The San Francisco office expectations encompass both the San Francisco and San Jose metro areas.

__Our customers come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because it makes our company stronger. If you share our values and our enthusiasm for small businesses, you will find a home at Gusto.

_Gusto is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in hiring or any employment decision based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or other applicable legally protected characteristic. Gusto considers qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. Gusto is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. We want to see our candidates perform to the best of their ability. If you require a medical or religious accommodations at any time throughout your candidate journey, please fill out this form _and a member of our team will get in touch with you.Gusto takes security and protection of your personal information very seriously. Please review our Fraudulent Activity Disclaimer.

_Gusto has physical office spaces in Denver, San Francisco, and New York City. Employees who are based in those locations will be expected to work from the office on designated days approximately 2-3 days per week (or more depending on role). The same office expectations apply to all Symmetry roles, Gusto's subsidiary, whose physical office is in Scottsdale.

Note: The San Francisco office expectations encompass both the San Francisco and San Jose metro areas.

When approved to work from a location other than a Gusto office, a secure, reliable, and consistent internet connection is required.

Our customers come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because it makes our company stronger. If you share our values and our enthusiasm for small businesses, you will find a home at Gusto.

Gusto is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in hiring or any employment decision based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or other applicable legally protected characteristic. Gusto considers qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. Gusto is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. We want to see our candidates perform to the best of their ability. If you require a medical or religious accommodation at any time throughout your candidate journey, please fill out this form and a member of our team will get in touch with you.

Gusto takes security and protection of your personal information very seriously. Please review our Fraudulent Activity Disclaimer.

Personal information collected and processed as part of your Gusto application will be subject to Gusto's Applicant Privacy Notice.