Full-Stack Software Engineer, Reinforcement Learning

hud (YC W25)

. Build product surfaces, backend systems, and internal tools powering HUD’s reinforcement-learning data engine .

Posted 9/23/2026full-timeSan Francisco • California • United StatesMid-LevelSeniorWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

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Demonstrates strong software engineering fundamentals with proficiency in Python and modern web technologies. Capable of building end-to-end product surfaces and backend systems while collaborating effectively across teams.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Python ProgrammingFull-Stack DevelopmentCloud InfrastructureDashboard DevelopmentAPI Design

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

Software Engineering FundamentalsFull-Stack RangeReactTypeScriptNext.jsData Collection ToolsDebugging InterfacesObservability ToolsDeveloper ToolsWorkflow Products

Soft Skills

Strong Communication SkillsHigh AgencyGood Product Taste

Tools & Technologies

AWSKubernetesTerraformDockerCI/CDGrafana

Industry Keywords

Reinforcement LearningData EngineVendor WorkflowsTask QualityModel Behavior

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

AWSCloudDockerGrafanaJavaScriptKubernetesNext.jsPythonReactTerraformTypeScript

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Build product surfaces, backend systems, and internal tools powering HUD’s reinforcement-learning data engine
Own product surfaces end-to-end, including backend services, APIs, databases, dashboards, tools, vendor workflows, data collection, and observability for RL rollouts
Develop tools for browsing environments, inspecting trajectories, reviewing task quality, debugging failures, and understanding model behavior
Build vendor-facing workflows for creating, submitting, testing, and iterating on RL environments and training data
Create dashboards and observability tools for environment quality, eval results, data collection progress, grader issues, reward signal problems, and pipeline health
Design backend services and APIs connecting task authoring, data collection, evaluation, QA/QC, and RL training infrastructure
Partner with research, operations, and go-to-market teams to turn ambiguous requests into well-designed systems
Participate in two technical interviews and a 2–3 day work trial as part of the hiring process

Requirements

What you’ll need

Strong software engineering fundamentals and full-stack range
Proficiency in Python and a modern web stack such as React, TypeScript, Next.js, or similar
Experience owning user-facing or internal products end-to-end
Good product taste and ability to build intuitive tools for technical and non-technical users
Comfort with cloud infrastructure, Docker, CI/CD, observability, and production debugging
High agency and ability to identify, build, and improve products without waiting for a perfect specification
Strong communication skills for working across research, engineering, operations, vendors, and founders
Experience building data collection, labeling, annotation, eval, or research tooling platforms may be advantageous
Experience building dashboards, review workflows, observability tools, or debugging interfaces for complex systems may be advantageous
Experience building developer tools, infrastructure products, internal platforms, or workflow products may be advantageous
Experience with AWS, Kubernetes, Terraform, Docker, Grafana, or similar infrastructure tools may be advantageous
Motivated candidates are encouraged to apply even if they do not meet all criteria

Benefits

Comp & perks

100% covered top-of-the-line medical, dental, and vision from Blue Shield of CA (US employees)
Lunch and dinner when you’re in the office (in-office employees)
Company-wide holiday break from Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day on top of PTO and paid holidays
Equinox membership (US employees)
401k (US employees)
Commuter benefits (US employees)
Unlimited access to tokens for ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, etc.
Support for relocation and visas for strong full-time candidates to the US or Singapore