AmazonSoftware Development Engineer II
Amazon is hiring a Software Development Engineer II in Toronto, Canada. It pays CAD 115k-CAD 192k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Level.
AI in this role
Design and build end-to-end AI agents using large language models and retrieval systems to process large data volumes.
We're looking for a software engineer to join the team to design and build the agent end to end — the reasoning and orchestration layer, the tools and skills it uses to retrieve and analyze data, the quality of the answers it produces, and the experience of interacting with it. This is applied GenAI on real, high-scale data: you'll work with large language models, agentic orchestration, and the retrieval systems that feed them. Because our customers depend on fast, correct responses, you'll own the qualities that make an agent great in production — response latency, accuracy, and cost.
As an SDE II you'll own features and components of the agent — designing and delivering capabilities, tools, and skills, contributing to design reviews, and raising the bar on latency, accuracy, and cost within your area.
We work in some of the most exciting problem spaces in software today: LLM-based agents, large-scale data retrieval and streaming systems, and the analytics pipelines that turn high volumes of data into answers. If you're passionate about building AI systems that solve real business problems, and you want a team whose results directly influence Amazon's business, this is the right place for you.
The ideal candidate is innovative with strong problem-solving, analytical, and technical skills. You're comfortable and confident on Linux systems, have a deep understanding of software development in an agile team, and enjoy simplifying complex problems and tackling challenges. You demonstrate exceptional customer focus and love discovering the true requirements underlying a feature request.
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
- Experience programming with at least one software programming language
Preferred qualifications
- 3+ years of full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations experience
- Bachelor's degree in computer science or equivalent
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. As a total compensation company, Amazon's package may include other elements such as sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, basic life & AD&D insurance), Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), Deferred Profit Sharing Plan (DPSP), paid time off, and other resources to improve health and well-being. We thank all applicants for their interest, however only those interviewed will be advised as to hiring status.
CAN, ON, Toronto - 114,800.00 - 191,800.00 CAD annually
How we rate this
Software Development Engineer II at Amazon rates 90 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.
Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.
- ●●●● 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. Open the description and count.
Prepare for this job
Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.
Skills and AI tools this role asks for
Also common in software engineer jobs at this level
Pay
- Typical software engineer job
- $168k
Use the typical software engineer figure as a reference when pay comes up. See software engineer jobs
Questions you could be asked
- How do you decide when an AI agent can act on its own versus asking for approval first?
- Tell me about a project where software development was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where llm agents was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where orchestration was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where data retrieval was part of your work. What did you do?
Adapt your resume
- List these exact terms on your resume: AI agents, Software Development, LLM Agents, Orchestration, and Data Retrieval. 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.
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