{"id":2517499,"url":"https://alion.io/job/valid-principal-engineer","title":"Principal Engineer","company":{"id":4417336,"name":"Valid","domain":"valid.co","url":"https://alion.io/company/valid-5","size_band":"11-50","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":75,"open_postings":9,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":1,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":null,"computed_at":"2026-10-15T05:46:00Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"remote","remote_scope":"stated_countries","remote_scope_basis":"board_field","remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":[],"countries":[],"hiring_countries":["US"],"hiring_countries_total":1,"salary":{"min":220000,"max":280000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":280000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":6,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Agile","optional":false},{"name":"AI Agents","optional":false},{"name":"AWS","optional":false},{"name":"CI/CD","optional":false},{"name":"Docker","optional":false},{"name":"GCP","optional":false},{"name":"Kubernetes","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"PyTorch","optional":false},{"name":"Replit","optional":false},{"name":"TensorFlow","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-05-29T20:23:25Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-05-29","last_verified_at":"2026-10-15T12:09:22Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":138,"trust":{"level":"stale","repost_count":0,"flags":["stale"],"days_open":138},"description":"About Valid\nValid is one of the fastest-growing AI-native marketing companies. We’re building the company that replaces the traditional marketing agency.\nWe help brands grow across Meta, TikTok, Google, and TV by combining software, AI agents, creative production, and media buying into a single system. Every day, we launch, measure, and iterate on advertising campaigns at a speed that traditional agencies can’t match.\nOur team operates at the intersection of AI video, filmmaking, performance marketing, and engineering. We believe the future of marketing isn’t people or AI, it’s people working alongside AI systems to produce better work, faster.\nThe model is already working. Valid manages more than $40M in annualized advertising spend and partners with some of the fastest-growing consumer and technology companies, including Replit, Rover, Tolan, and others. Since launching, we’ve consistently won head-to-head against incumbent agencies by delivering better performance and moving faster.\nBacked by Canaan, Neo, Steve Huffman, Scott Banister, and other leading investors and operators, we’re building the next generation of marketing.\nThis Role Is for You If You're:\nSeasoned in architecting and implementing high scale and throughput systems\n\nAccomplished in leading engineering teams in delivering game-changing products\n\nSkilled at partnering with product and business counterparts in roadmap and decisioning\n\nRelentless in managing resources and allocation towards yielding optimal outcomes\n\nPrincipal Engineer in a Nutshell\nYou are the top day-to-day engineer at Valid. You reside at the confluence of all technical decisions, partnering with the CTO to determine engineering direction on both macro and micro scales. You thoughtfully operate at the cusp between hands-on software development, high-level design, and technical leadership. You lead and mentor our engineering team in executing and delivering against our aggressive roadmap, and as Valid's prospects and mandate grow, so too do your role and responsibilities. In short, your execution and dedication as Principal Engineer will be a key factor in Valid's success.\nKey Qualifications\nExperience: 6+ years software engineering experience with a strong focus on system architecture of large-scale, performant distributed systems\n\nTechnical Leadership: 3+ years leading technical teams, setting engineering standards, and driving architectural decisions in an agile environment\n\nEngineering Excellence: Mastery in Python (our day-to-day operating language) and a second-nature commitment to engineering best practices (e.g., CI/CD, testing, fault-tolerance)\n\nCloud and Infrastructure: Hands-on experience managing and deploying cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Google Cloud) and orchestration tools (e.g., k8s, Docker)\n\nFamiliarity with AI/ML: Proficient knowledge of AI and machine learning platforms/APIs, frameworks (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch), and algorithms\n\nCross-functional Collaboration: Track record of optimizing technical outcomes that account for engineering, product, and business partners and requirements\n\nNice to Have\n2+ years in adtech or martech engineering in a senior capacity\n\n2+ years in early-stage (pre-Series B) startups\n\n2+ years as an engineering people manager\n\nWhat We Offer\nSalary: We strive to make offers in the 90th-plus percentile of similar stage/trajectory companies for the level offered\n\nEquity: Generous grants commensurate with experience and company stage\n\nBenefits: 401k, healthcare, FSA, meals (when in-person)\n\nWorkplace: Remote-possible with a preference for IRL in our San Francisco headquarters\n\nImpact: A foundational opportunity to revolutionize the landscape of digital advertising, forever\n\nGrowth: Active support in growing your career, skills, and outcomes in tandem with the growth of our business\n\nCulture: A mission-driven organization where contributions are honored, diversity in experience and background is recognized, and disruption is core to everything we pursue\n\nYou're Probably a Good Fit If:\nApplying the latest tech in novel ways to delight customers excites you, and your goal is to maximize ownership\n\nYou want to join something early-stage and can thrive in an environment of organized chaos:\nOrganized: Build with purpose, work efficiently, communicate clearly, especially in writing.\n\nChaos: We think the best place to learn is in market and will do what it takes to ship as quickly as possible.\n\nThis Role Might Not Be a Fit If:\nYou don't enjoy wearing multiple hats\n\nYou don't enjoy mentoring others\n\nYou dislike navigating ambiguity","description_format":"text","description_chars":4579,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":6,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["401k plan","Equity"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United 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