Lead infrastructure initiatives, mentor engineers, design scalable systems, solve complex problems, and shape the organization's cloud strategy and best practices.
Ready to shape the future of AI infrastructure and build systems that power the most advanced unstructured data pipelines in the world?
At Unstructured, we’re building the backbone of generative AI—enabling companies to transform PDFs, HTML, Word docs, images, and more into high-performance data pipelines that scale. Our tools are already used by half of the Fortune 500, and our open-source package has been downloaded 36+ million times. Now we’re entering our next chapter—and we’re hiring a Principal Infrastructure Engineer to help lead the charge.
If you're energized by hard problems, want to build systems that matter, and are ready to work alongside serious builders, this is your moment. We're looking for a hands-on technical leader—someone ready to own org-level infrastructure strategy, mentor engineers, and scale our systems with performance, security, and simplicity at the core.
🏢 This role is hybrid in San Francisco—join us in-office 3x a week for deep collaboration, whiteboard sessions, and hands-on impact.
🔧 What You’ll Own & Drive
🛠 Own the Infrastructure Backbone
Architect and scale resilient, secure, and high-performance infrastructure across the organization
Define and execute infrastructure strategy that aligns with product and business goals
🚀 Lead Strategic Initiatives
Drive cross-functional, high-impact infrastructure projects—compute, networking, orchestration, storage
Guide decisions that shape our CI/CD pipelines, observability, automation, and internal platforms
🔥 Solve the Hard Stuff
Own the resolution of persistent, high-stakes infrastructure problems—downtime, latency, deployment bottlenecks
Prevent future incidents through root cause analysis, mitigation design, and proactive reliability engineering
🧑🏫 Mentor & Multiply
Mentor engineers across the org and raise the bar on infrastructure best practices
Promote a culture of operational excellence, automation, and reliability
🧭 Drive Cross-Team Alignment
Resolve infrastructure escalations and unblock teams across product and engineering
Ensure internal platforms are simple, scalable, and enable fast product delivery
🏗 Make Foundational Impact
Influence how we build, deploy, and operate software now and in the future
Shape platform capabilities, developer experience, and long-term cloud strategy
🧬 What You Bring
10+ years of experience building and operating infrastructure or site reliability systems at scale
Expert-level knowledge of cloud platforms (AWS/GCP/Azure), containers (Docker, Kubernetes), and IaC (Terraform, etc.)
Strong Python skills and deep understanding of distributed systems architecture
Proven leadership across multi-team technical strategy and high-stakes decision making
Passion for debugging, systems thinking, and driving infrastructure simplicity
Excellent communicator—you bring clarity to complexity and inspire confidence across teams
💎 Bonus Points
Experience with AI/ML infrastructure, unstructured data workflows, or real-time data pipelines
Deep knowledge of observability tooling, production readiness, or platform security
Startup DNA—you move fast, operate well in ambiguity, and thrive when ownership is high
🌟 Why You’ll Love It Here
Real Impact: You’ll be at the heart of infrastructure powering cutting-edge AI in production
Big Challenges: Tackle hard, novel infrastructure problems in one of the most high-growth areas of tech
Elite Team: Work with sharp, humble engineers who obsess over quality and uptime
In-Person Energy: Be part of our San Francisco office culture—where systems get designed on whiteboards, not just Slack threads
Fast Growth: Help define foundational infrastructure as we scale rapidly into our next chapter
Top Skills
AWS
Azure
Docker
GCP
Kubernetes
Python
Terraform
Similar Jobs
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Consumer Web • Productivity • Software • App development • Data Privacy
Lead the design and operation of Dropbox's metadata infrastructure, shaping technical strategy, solving high-impact challenges, and mentoring engineers.
Top Skills:
C++GoJavaPythonRust
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Internet of Things • Machine Learning • Analytics • Industrial
The Staff Systems Engineer leads Ethernet communication design, collaborates on technology solutions, and mentors development teams, focusing on systems engineering strategies and execution.
Top Skills:
Can ProtocolsElectrical Systems DesignEmbedded Software DevelopmentEthernet
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Internet of Things • Machine Learning • Analytics • Industrial
As a Staff Systems Engineer, you'll lead Ethernet communication design and systems engineering, guiding implementation and enhancing product solutions in a collaborative environment.
Top Skills:
Analysis ToolsCan ProtocolsCommunication StacksEmbedded Software DevelopmentEthernet Communication
What you need to know about the Colorado Tech Scene
With a business-friendly climate and research universities like CU Boulder and Colorado State, Colorado has made a name for itself as a startup ecosystem. The state boasts a skilled workforce and high quality of life thanks to its affordable housing, vibrant cultural scene and unparalleled opportunities for outdoor recreation. Colorado is also home to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, helping cement its status as a hub for renewable energy innovation.
Key Facts About Colorado Tech
- Number of Tech Workers: 260,000; 8.5% of overall workforce (2024 CompTIA survey)
- Major Tech Employers: Lockheed Martin, Century Link, Comcast, BAE Systems, Level 3
- Key Industries: Software, artificial intelligence, aerospace, e-commerce, fintech, healthtech
- Funding Landscape: $4.9 billion in VC funding in 2024 (Pitchbook)
- Notable Investors: Access Venture Partners, Ridgeline Ventures, Techstars, Blackhorn Ventures
- Research Centers and Universities: Colorado School of Mines, University of Colorado Boulder, University of Denver, Colorado State University, Mesa Laboratory, Space Science Institute, National Center for Atmospheric Research, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Gottlieb Institute
