Level

typesafe ai

Software Engineer Generalist

typesafe ai is hiring a Software Engineer Generalist in San Francisco, United States. It pays $210k-$285k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Level.

AI in this role

Generalist software engineer helping rebuild the LLM stack to combine reasoning with code reliability.

first-principlesllmssoftware-architecturesystem-design

We’re building prod, not god. TypeSafe is an AI lab pushing frontier model intelligence in a new direction, starting with System One Models. We combine the reasoning of LLMs with the reliability of code, for truly trustworthy AI. Our first model, Jev, launched in September 2026.

While others chase leaderboards, we’re rebuilding the LLM stack from first principles to make models smarter and also dependable enough to run in production. We’re a small, fast team backed by an $870M Series A led by a16z. Made in SF, with love. Come join the frontier.

About the Role

What role?! Maybe we haven't scoped it yet, but you've learned enough about the mission to believe we need you here. If you're an entrepreneurial and technical builder, don't let our lack of imagination stop you from introducing yourself.

Across any engineering discipline, we are looking for people who

  • Are spiky in at least one domain and skillset, well-rounded in essential others, and have the self-awareness to know the difference

  • Show complete ownership — can think about goals on a strategic level and define what needs to happen toward that goal, rather than at the level of tasks or tickets

  • Solve problems from both first-principles reasoning and a reservoir of lived experience

  • Understand and follow the AI industry and understand both the joys and the limitations of current-generation LLM models

  • Care deeply about our mission and are driven to translate it into real-world impact

  • Have 5+ years of professional expertise (to be clear: many of us are 10+ YOE) in high-performing teams, including under shifting and ambiguous environments

 Life at TypeSafe

We’re a small, flat, close-knit team dedicated to real-world impact preparing the world for Transformative AI. Our team works fully in-person in our San Francisco office near Embarcadero station. We love what we do and care about our work a lot.

We strive for excellence and craftsmanship and won't stop until we get there. When the team wins, we all win, and we enjoy collaborating and inspiring each other to grow as a team and as individuals.

We also value emotional honesty, kindness, and bringing your whole self to work. We build machines; we don't try to be machines.

We want you to be able to do the most impactful work of your career at TypeSafe and help define our future as a company.

 We provide
  • 100% covered health insurance

  • Daily lunch and dinner

  • Visa sponsorships

  • 401K plans

 

How we rate this

Software Engineer Generalist at typesafe ai rates 85 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. 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

First PrinciplesLLMsSoftware ArchitectureSystem Design

Also common in software engineer jobs at this level

Pay

This job starts at
$210k
Typical software engineer job
$168k

This posting starts 25% above the typical software engineer job. See software engineer jobs

Questions you could be asked

  1. Tell me about a project where first principles was part of your work. What did you do?
  2. Tell me about a project where llms was part of your work. What did you do?
  3. Tell me about a project where software architecture was part of your work. What did you do?
  4. Tell me about a project where system design was part of your work. What did you do?
  5. How would you decide a model or AI system is ready to ship?

Adapt your resume

  • List these exact terms on your resume: First Principles, LLMs, Software Architecture, and System Design. 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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