Skip to content

NVIDIA

Senior Software Engineer, Metropolis Vision AI

NVIDIA is hiring a Senior Software Engineer, Metropolis Vision AI in Santa Clara, United States. It pays $224k-$357k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on NVIDIA.

Level's read on this job

  • On Level's scale, this software engineer role is Builds AI ●●●●: the job is building AI systems.
  • The listed pay starts 34% above the typical software engineer posting on Level.
  • Tools and skills the posting cites include PyTorch, fine tuning and computer vision.
  • Level classifies it as a senior role.
  • Level lists 2,700+ other open roles at NVIDIA.

AI in this role

PyTorch
fine-tuningcomputer-vision

NVIDIA's technology is at the heart of the AI revolution, touching people across the planet by powering everything from self-driving cars, robotics, co-pilots, and more. Join us at the forefront of technological advancement in intelligent assistants and information retrieval. Metropolis is transforming how the physical world is perceived and understood using advanced computer vision and deep learning. Our team builds large-scale distributed Vision AI platforms that power intelligent spaces, smart cities, retail analytics, and digital twins. This role offers the opportunity to own core components of a strategic platform with high visibility and real-world impact. As a System Software Engineer for Vision AI, you will develop and optimize high-performance vision systems that turn massive streams of video, image, and 3D data into actionable insights. You will collaborate with specialists in perception, simulation, and large models to bring research into production at scale.

What you’ll be doing:

  • Crafting and implementing high-performance Vision AI pipelines for real-time and streaming scenarios using brand-new computer vision and deep learning models.

  • Developing and refining large-scale distributed services responsible for processing video, image, and 3D data in both edge and cloud settings.

  • Developing multi-modal perception capabilities that combine 2D, 3D, and temporal information to understand complex real-world scenes.

  • Using simulation and synthetic data tools to build, test, and validate perception algorithms at scale.

  • Profiling and tuning GPU-accelerated inference pipelines to meet strict latency, efficiency, and reliability targets.

  • Collaborating with partner teams across product, research, and platform to translate requirements into clear technical builds and robust implementations.

  • Driving technical build reviews, promoting guidelines for code quality and testing, and mentoring other engineers on Vision AI systems development.

What we need to see:

  • BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical/Computer Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

  • 12+ years of professional software development experience using modern C++ (14/17/20) and Python on Linux.

  • Strong computer science fundamentals, including algorithms, data structures, concurrency, and distributed systems concepts.

  • Demonstrated expertise in computer vision and deep learning, with a history of deploying production systems in these fields with a focus on Vision-Language Model (VLM).

  • Experience building and debugging high-performance, concurrent systems, including multi-threading, asynchronous I/O, and efficient memory management.

  • Proficiency working in Linux-based environments with containers and microservices, integrating AI components into scalable back-end services.

  • Ability to rapidly prototype vision models and pipelines, then evolve them into production-quality services.

  • Practical experience with PyTorch in training, fine-tuning, and deploying models for vision tasks.

  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a data-driven approach to performance optimization and system build.

  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with demonstrated success collaborating across time zones and functions.

Ways to stand out from the crowd:

  • Proven experience delivering end-to-end computer vision applications in production, such as video analytics, smart cities, autonomous systems, retail analytics, industrial inspection, or digital twins.

  • Practical experience with GPU acceleration (such as CUDA, TensorRT, or comparable technologies) and low-level optimization for inference and pre/post-processing.

  • Experience in simulation and synthetic data creation employing tools such as Omniverse, Unreal Engine, Unity, or similar digital-twin platforms.

  • Background in vision-language models or related multi-modal AI, including integrating these models into real products.

  • Background in multimedia, including video-centric processing and delivery (such as codecs, video pipelines, or media frameworks) and integrating vision models into multimedia workflows.

With competitive salaries and a generous benefits package, NVIDIA is widely considered to be one of the technology industry's most desirable employers. We have some of the most forward-thinking and versatile people in the world working with us, and our engineering teams are growing fast in some of the most impactful fields of our generation: Deep Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Autonomous Vehicles. If you're a creative engineer who enjoys autonomy and shares our passion for technology, we want to hear from you.

Your base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and other objective job-related factors. The expected base salary range for this position is 224,000 USD – 356,500 USD.

You will also be eligible for equity and benefits.

Applications for this job will be accepted at least until November 3, 2026.

This posting is for an existing vacancy.

NVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.

NVIDIA is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and proud to be an equal opportunity employer. As we highly value diversity in our current and future employees, we do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status or any other characteristic protected by law.

How we rate this

Senior Software Engineer, Metropolis Vision AI at NVIDIA rates 97 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Builds AI (AI Level 4 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.

  1. ●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
  2. ●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
  3. ●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
  4. ●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

Fine-tuningComputer visionPyTorch

Also common in software engineer jobs at this level

Pay

This job starts at
$224k
Typical software engineer job
$167k

This posting starts 34% above the typical software engineer job. See software engineer jobs

Questions you could be asked

  1. Walk me through fine-tuning a model: what data did you use, and how did you check the result?
  2. Walk me through a computer vision problem you solved, from raw data to a deployed model.
  3. What are the limits of PyTorch that you've run into, and how did you work around them?
  4. How would you decide a model or AI system is ready to ship?
  5. Tell me about a time a model underperformed in production. How did you find out, and what did you change?

Adapt your resume

  • List these exact terms on your resume: Fine-tuning, Computer vision, and PyTorch. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
  • Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
  • Lead with what you built, trained or shipped. This role is judged on the AI system itself, not the tools around it.

Get your CV reviewed before you apply

Send your CV and the role you want next. Your review arrives by email within 3 days.

Get new software engineer jobs (Builds AI ●●●●) by email

One email a week, each job rated for how much AI is in the work. No recruiter spam, unsubscribe in one click.

Free.

Similar roles

Software Engineering roles that build AI, at other companies.

What kind of AI work fits you?

Answer 12 practical questions in about three minutes. Get a simple profile, the work it points to, and live roles to explore next.

Find my next step

More jobs at NVIDIA

More software engineer jobs

Related searches

Same AI level

Jobs by city