Principal Software Engineer
Microsoft
Microsoft Azure is in the race to win it.
The Azure Networking team is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to drive the next generation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) native Layer 7 (L7) networking & security. You will lead the evolution of application-layer load balancing, advanced L7 security, and identity-aware traffic processing purpose built for modern Large Language Models (LLMs) & Generative AI (GenAI) applications, and Agentic AI workloads running at global cloud scale. You will shape the future of Azure’s L7 services, building intelligent, high performance systems that integrate with cutting edge Software Defined Networks (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) platforms. Our team continuously innovates to deliver unmatched agility, reliability, performance, and cost efficiency across one of the world’s largest distributed networks.
We are looking for deeply technical engineers with proficient L7 proxy, Kubernetes, and distributed systems expertise who can design, build, and operate services at hyperscale. If you are energized by complex technical challenges, enjoy driving architectural vision, and want to define how networking evolves for AI - driven applications, this role offers a rare opportunity. You will accelerate your career while developing deep expertise across cloud platforms, largescale systems, and next generation AI networking.
The developer will participate in the architecture and design of key components and ensure timely, highquality feature delivery. They will own their components end-to-end, including testing, managing cross-team dependencies, and maintaining robust monitoring and alerting for deployed services. This role requires extensive collaboration with internal Azure and Microsoft teams as well as external networking partners and vendors.
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
Works with appropriate stakeholders to determine user requirements for a set of features.
Contributes to the identification of dependencies, and the development of design documents for a product area with little oversight.
Creates and implements code for a product, service, or feature, reusing code as applicable.
Contributes efforts to break down larger work items into smaller work items and provides estimation.
Acts as a Designated Responsible Individual (DRI) working on call to monitor system/product feature/service for degradation, downtime, or interruptions and gain approval to restore system/product/service for simple problems.
Remains current in skills by investing time and effort into staying up to date on developments that will improve the availability, reliability, efficiency, observability, and performance of products while also driving consistency in monitoring and operations at scale.
Qualifications
Required/minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR equivalent experience.
Other Requirements:
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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.
- Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 10+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
- OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
- OR equivalent experience.
- 10+ years of experience in one or more of the following areas:
- L7 proxy (Envoy, Nginx, or HA proxy)
- Ingress and Gateway Application Programming Interface (API) for Kubernetes Ingress Load balancing, Service Mesh
- Contribution to open-source software projects in L7 proxy & Networking or Security domain.
- Advanced security (WAF, IDPS, DLP, DPI)
- Identity Integration (OAuth/OIDC, Entra Identity or other Identity providers)
- Network protocols (HTTP/HTTPS, TLS, SSL, QUIC, Websockets etc.)
- Strong experience in C# or Java, C++, Golang, gRPC, Linux/Unix systems.
- Hands-on experience with container platforms (Kubernetes, Ray, Slurm etc.)
- Experience working with frontier LLM Models, Agentic AI, MCP and/or A2A protocols.
- Designing and running large-scale fault-tolerant infrastructure services
- Distributed systems & microservices.
- Proficient communication and cross-team collaboration skills.
- Experience designing infrastructure catered to AI/ML inference & training and Agentic workloads.
- Knowledge of Azure Networking stack or similar cloud platforms (AWS, GCP)
Software Engineering IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $163,000 - $296,400 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $220,800 - $331,200 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
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.