Software Development Engineer, EC2 Instance Networking

Amazon is hiring a Software Development Engineer, EC2 Instance Networking in Seattle, United States. It pays $144k-$194k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Amazon.

Level's read on this job

Little AI ●○○○ is how Level rates this software engineer role: aI is not part of the work.
The posting mentions C, Rust and systems software among its tools and skills.
Level classes it as a mid-level role.
Amazon has 21,000+ other open roles on Level.

AI in this role

Build high-performance software-defined networking infrastructure for cloud workloads and distributed AI clusters.

crust

systems-softwarenetworkingvirtualizationdistributed-systemsembedded-systems

Do you want to build the networking infrastructure that powers every virtual machine in the world's largest cloud? Are you excited by the challenge of writing systems software that runs on millions custom networking cards across millions of hosts?

The Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) Instance Networking team builds and operates the software-defined networking stack at the heart of AWS. Our code is what makes Virtual Private Clouds (VPC) work, what enforces customer security policies, and what enables workloads to scale from a single instance to clusters of tens of thousands. Every packet that enters or leaves an EC2 instance flows through software we write, running on custom silicon designed in-house.

This work sits at the intersection of cloud infrastructure and the AI revolution. As machine learning workloads grow to unprecedented scale - training runs spanning thousands of accelerators, clusters demanding millions of network endpoints, and fabrics pushing hundreds of gigabits per second. We build the networking primitives that make these workloads possible: high-performance interfaces, low-latency data plane protocols, and scalable network virtualization that operates predictably even under heavy churn. When the world's most ambitious AI companies scale on AWS, they're relying on the software we build.

You'll write low-level systems code in C and Rust running on custom hardware in a real-time embedded environment. You'll work on network virtualization protocols, packet processing pipelines, and availability mechanisms that must perform correctly at massive scale with sub-second latency requirements. You'll solve problems that span hardware, firmware, and software, and see the direct impact of your work on customers running some of the largest and most demanding workloads in the cloud.

Key job responsibilities
- Design and implement data plane networking software on custom hardware, working across the full software lifecycle from design through deployment and operations
- Build and improve network virtualization systems that deliver VPC connectivity, security policy enforcement, and performance isolation for EC2 customers
- Investigate and resolve complex production issues across distributed embedded systems, driving root cause analysis and permanent fixes
- Collaborate with partner teams across hardware, control plane, and ML platforms to deliver end-to-end solutions

Basic qualifications

- 3+ years of non-internship professional software development experience
- 2+ years of non-internship design or architecture (design patterns, reliability and scaling) of new and existing systems experience
- 1+ years of software development engineer or related occupational experience
- 1+ years of designing and developing large-scale, multi-tiered, multi-threaded, embedded or distributed software applications, tools, systems, and services using: C#, C++, Java, or Perl experience
- Bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field
- Experience programming with at least one software programming language

Preferred qualifications

- 4+ years of full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations experience
- Knowledge of system performance, memory management, and parallel computing principles
- Experience in networking, large-scale distributed systems or a related field
- Experience in Linux and Networking protocols

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, WA, Seattle - 143,700.00 - 194,400.00 USD annually

How we rate this

Software Development Engineer, EC2 Instance Networking at Amazon rates 20 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Little AI (AI Level 1 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Little AI. AI is not part of the work.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ 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.

Key facts

Software Development Engineer, EC2 Instance Networking is an open job at Amazon.
Level rates this role AI Level 1 of 4: Little AI.
The listed salary is $144k-$194k a year.
The role is based in US, WA, Seattle.
The job was posted on October 12, 2026.
Seniority: mid.
Applications are handled by Amazon. Apply on Amazon

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

Systems SoftwareNetworkingVirtualizationDistributed SystemsEmbedded SystemsCRust

Also common in software engineer jobs at this level

Python Kubernetes TypeScript React Docker JavaScript

Pay

This job starts at: $144k
Typical software engineer job: $168k

This posting starts 15% below the typical software engineer job. See software engineer jobs

Questions you could be asked

Tell me about a project where systems software was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where networking was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where virtualization was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where distributed systems was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where embedded systems was part of your work. What did you do?

Adapt your resume

List these exact terms on your resume: Systems Software, Networking, Virtualization, Distributed Systems, and Embedded Systems. 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.

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