Senior Software Engineer - Distributed Systems

Microsoft 365 Copilot is redefining how people work by combining the power of AI, large language models, and productivity applications to help users accomplish more. We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer to help create the next generation of AI-powered experiences that transform how people discover information, make decisions, collaborate with others, and complete complex work.

In this role, you will build intelligent systems that enable Copilot to understand user intent, reason across multiple sources of information, and help users accomplish meaningful outcomes through natural language interactions. You will work on challenging problems at the intersection of AI, large-scale distributed systems, information retrieval, and user experience, delivering solutions that impact millions of users worldwide.

We're looking for engineers who thrive in fast-moving environments, are passionate about customer impact, and enjoy turning ambitious ideas into high-quality products.

Why Join Us

You will have the opportunity to work on some of the most exciting challenges, helping shape the future of productivity for millions of users around the world. You'll collaborate with talented engineers, researchers, and product leaders, work with state-of-the-art AI technologies, and contribute to products that have meaningful daily impact on how people work.

Our culture values curiosity, learning, and collaboration. We encourage engineers to think boldly, move quickly, and deliver responsibly, while maintaining a commitment to quality, trust, and customer success.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and operate scalable services that power AI-driven productivity experiences.
• Develop systems that enable intelligent reasoning, planning, information retrieval, and task execution across complex user workflows.
• Partner closely with product managers, designers, researchers, and data scientists to identify customer problems and deliver impactful solutions.
• Leverage large language models and modern AI technologies to create intuitive, trustworthy, and effective user experiences.
• Drive experimentation and data-informed decision making, using telemetry and customer feedback to improve quality, adoption, and satisfaction.
• Contribute to system architecture, technical design, operational excellence, and engineering best practices.
• Lead feature development from concept to production, balancing innovation, reliability, performance, and maintainability.
• Mentor engineers and help cultivate a culture of technical excellence, collaboration, and continuous learning.

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 4+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
  • OR equivalent experience.

Additional or preferred qualifications

Other Requirements: Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:

• Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field.
• 6+ years of professional software engineering experience building and shipping production services or applications.
• Solid programming skills in languages such as C#, Java, C++ or Python.
• Experience designing, building, and operating large-scale distributed systems.
• Solid foundations in system design, debugging, testing, and operational excellence.
• Demonstrated ability to solve complex technical problems and deliver customer-facing solutions.
• Experience building AI-powered products or platforms.
• Familiarity with large language models (LLMs), retrieval systems, semantic search, AI agents, or orchestration frameworks.
• Experience developing systems that support complex, multi-step user workflows.
• Background in experimentation, telemetry analysis, and data-driven product development.
• Experience working across disciplines to bring innovative products from concept to launch.

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.