Principal Agentic Engineer (Back-end)

About the role

The Principal Agentic Engineer (Back-end) is a senior technical leader within our engineering organization, responsible for designing, building, and scaling robust backend systems that support modern, AI-powered digital products. This role combines deep backend engineering expertise with strong architectural judgment, AI-system fluency, and client-facing leadership. As a Principal Agentic Engineer, you will lead technical direction across complex backend systems, mentor engineers, and partner closely with clients and internal teams to deliver production-grade solutions. You will play a critical role in designing distributed, cloud-native architectures and integrating large language models (LLMs), vector databases, and AI agents into real-world applications. You will engineer teams of coding agents to accomplish implementation requirements for the systems you will be building. You bring proven leadership at a Staff or Lead level, with a track record of delivering complex software initiatives end-to-end. You operate with high autonomy and can take loosely defined goals and turn them into well-architected, shipped software. #LI-Remote LIFE AT APPLY People are at the core of everything we do at APPLY. We provide you with modern tools, systems and approaches, value your time, safety, and health, and strive to build a work community where you can thrive and grow. Here are a few benefits we offer to support you: Agentic Delivery: Our people work in a modern way to deliver client outcomes. Broaden your skills on a range of engagements with international brands that have a global impact. An inclusive and safe environment: We're truly committed to building a culture where you are celebrated and everyone feels welcome and safe. AI & Strategic Upskilling: Accelerate your professional growth with generous training budgets and mentorship, with a specific focus on Agentic AI expertise and the critical human skills required for the future of work. Generous vacation policy: Work-life balance is key to our team's success, so we offer ample time away from work to promote overall well-being. Flexible work arrangements: We work in a variety of ways, from remote, to in-office, to a blend of both. APPLY is a safe, respectful, and inclusive community where differences are celebrated. We are committed to equal opportunity and fostering a workplace where everyone belongs. Learn more in our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) section. For recruitment accommodations, please email careers@applydigital.com.

Requirements

• Strong experience with Python 3 for backend development.
• Experience designing and consuming RESTful APIs.
• Proven experience with spec-driven development.
• Hands-on experience using AI coding agents (e.g., Copilot, Claude Code).
• Strong prompt engineering skills.
• Experience working with LLMs (e.g., Gemini 3, Claude Opus, GPT-4.x/5.x).
• Experience implementing vector stores and RAG architectures.
• Experience with Agent Development Kits (e.g., Google ADK).
• Strong experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
• Hands-on experience with Vertex AI and Google Gen AI APIs.
• Experience with relational and non-relational databases.
• Experience with Git and CI/CD pipelines.
• Strong system design fundamentals, including queues, caching strategies, database schema design, and API design. You know how to build systems that survive and scale in production.
• Experience designing AI agents, agent task planning, and reasoning patterns.
• Agent observability and debugging experience.

Additional Information

ABOUT APPLY APPLY is the Agentic Customer Experience (ACx) partner for the world's most ambitious consumer and entertainment brands. We bring together deep domain expertise across Retail, CPG, Sports, and Media with AI-native delivery capability, designing and delivering agentic solutions that turn CX vision into commercial reality. We are the partner of choice for brands like Arc'teryx, NFL, Lululemon, and Kraft Heinz. For more information, visit applydigital.com. LOCATION: APPLY is hybrid/remote-friendly. The preferred candidate should be based in Latin America, preferably working in hours that align to PT (Pacific Timezone) or ET (Eastern Timezone). Candidates located in Santiago, Chile are able to work out of our Santiago office as remote/hybrid employees. Candidates located outside of Santiago, Chile will be fully remote employees.

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