Software Engineer, Backend (New Grad)

Opportunity

This role is focused on building the next wave of AI-first product experiences, where natural conversation is converted into useful actions and outcomes. As a backend engineer on the product team, you will work across product, AI, and systems layers to influence how intelligence shows up in real workflows.

You will contribute to the complete lifecycle of AI-powered features, including data ingestion, model orchestration, shaping outputs into structured results, and delivering those results into user-facing surfaces. The work combines product judgment with systems design so that AI outputs are not only smart, but also dependable, fast, and aligned with user needs.

You will collaborate closely with product, design, and AI partners to prototype, launch, and refine experiences such as summaries, action items, and intelligent workflows, turning raw model output into polished product functionality.

Key impact

• Create end-to-end AI-driven product features by designing and implementing experiences that convert model output into clear, useful user value such as summaries, action items, and workflow automation.
• Improve product quality over time by refining prompts, data pipelines, and backend logic based on user feedback, evaluation results, and experimentation.
• Connect product needs with AI systems by translating requirements into services that coordinate LLMs, retrieval, and structured data in production.
• Make practical tradeoffs around latency, cost, reliability, and quality so the experience remains fast and trustworthy at scale.
• Use AI-assisted development tools to move quickly from idea to production while still maintaining strong engineering standards.
• Build scalable backend services in Python, including frameworks such as Django, to support evolving AI-powered product behavior.

What we are looking for

• A bachelor’s or master’s degree in Computer Science or a related discipline.
• A recent graduate or someone with up to 1 year of software development experience.
• Strong ability to write clean, maintainable code, preferably in Python, and comfort working across APIs, data systems, and asynchronous workflows.
• A product-oriented mindset that focuses on user outcomes rather than implementation alone.
• Interest in AI/LLM-based systems and how their behavior can be shaped in real applications.
• Ownership mindset with the ability to collaborate effectively across product, design, and AI teams.
• Comfort working in ambiguous, fast-changing environments and iterating rapidly.

Nice to have

• Exposure to LLM-powered features through coursework, projects, or internships, including prompting, evaluation, or retrieval-augmented generation.
• Previous internship or project experience building product-facing systems.

About Otter.ai

Otter.ai focuses on making conversations more valuable and is working to shape the future of work. The company has processed over 1 billion meetings and is known for meeting transcription, summarization, and collaboration. Its AI-powered platform generates real-time meeting notes, summaries, and other insights from in-person and virtual meetings, turning discussions into accessible and actionable information that teams can use and share.

The company is backed by early investors in Google, DeepMind, Zoom, and Tesla.

Equal opportunity and accommodations

Otter.ai is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity and is committed to an inclusive, accessible workplace. Reasonable accommodations are available for qualified applicants during the hiring process.

If you need an accommodation because of a disability, contact [email protected] at least 3 business days before your interview.

Candidate submission policy

Otter.ai does not accept unsolicited resumes from third-party recruitment agencies unless a written agreement is already in place for permanent placements. Any resume or candidate information sent outside the established submission process, including via the company website or directly to an employee, without such an agreement will be treated as company property, and no placement fee will be paid if the candidate is hired.

Compensation

The estimated annual base salary for this role is between USD 136,000 and USD 164,500. The final offer will depend on several factors, and base pay is only one part of the overall rewards package.