Senior Principal Front-End Network Engineer, AI Infrastructure Operations

Nscale

$150K — $200K *
Enterprise Technology
11 - 15 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 12+ years of experience in network engineering focused on hyperscale data centers, cloud, or AI infrastructure.
  • Expert-level operational and architectural experience with large-scale Ethernet data center fabrics (leaf-spine / Clos topologies).
  • Hands-on expertise with Arista and/or Nokia platforms in large-scale production environments.
  • Deep understanding of data center routing protocols like BGP and OSPF.
  • Proven experience with long-haul circuits, DCI, and various optical transport methods.
  • Strong background in storage networking over Ethernet at scale.
  • Demonstrated ability to debug complex network issues across different layers.

Responsibilities

  • Own the technical direction and operational strategy for AI infrastructure networks.
  • Design and evolve large-scale Ethernet architectures for future growth and performance.
  • Act as the primary escalation point for complex network incidents and investigations.
  • Drive initiatives to enhance network reliability and performance at scale.
  • Set standards for hardware configuration and operational practices.
  • Collaborate with various teams to design end-to-end systems for storage and circuits.
  • Mentor senior engineers to elevate operational standards and excellence.

Benefits

  • Collaborative and innovative work environment where individual contributions are valued.
  • Highly competitive compensation package reviewed annually.
  • Opportunity to work in a fast-growing tech startup focused on cutting-edge AI technology.
  • Personalized progression plan to support your career growth and ambitions.
Full Job Description
About The Role

The Network Operations and Engineering teams at Nscale operate some of the most demanding networking environments in the industry, supporting large-scale AI GPU clusters where network performance directly impacts customer outcomes.

We're looking for a Senior Principal Front End Network Engineer - AI Infrastructure to provide technical leadership across Nscale's front-end networking domain.

This role is focused on owning the reliability, scalability, and long-term evolution of our high-performance Ethernet front-end networks. These networks support inference traffic, cluster management, data ingress/egress, shared storage connectivity, long-haul circuits, and carrier handoffs. You will operate as a senior technical authority, influencing architecture, standards, and operational practices across teams while tackling the most complex front-end network challenges in the platform.
What You'll Be Doing
  • Owning the technical direction and operational strategy for Nscale's front-end AI infrastructure networks at the highest level
  • Designing, reviewing, and evolving large-scale Ethernet leaf-spine / Clos fabric architectures (including Arista and Nokia platforms) to support future growth, inference workloads, and storage requirements
  • Acting as the senior-most escalation point for the most complex front-end network incidents, guiding deep technical investigations and systemic fixes
  • Driving cross-team and cross-functional initiatives to improve fabric reliability, performance predictability, observability, and operational maturity at scale
  • Defining standards for hardware configuration, routing, congestion management, firmware lifecycle management, automation, and change safety across Arista EOS and Nokia platforms
  • Partnering with SRE, Compute Platform, Storage, and Network Architecture teams to influence end-to-end system design, including long-haul/DCI circuits and storage network integration
  • Mentoring senior and principal-level network engineers, raising the bar for operational rigor and technical excellence across the organization
  • Driving measurable improvements in uptime, latency consistency, capacity efficiency, and incident reduction for front-end services
About You (Skills / Qualifications)
  • 12+ years of experience in network engineering, with deep focus on hyperscale data centre, cloud, or AI infrastructure networking
  • Expert-level operational and architectural experience with large-scale Ethernet data centre fabrics (leaf-spine / Clos topologies)
  • Strong hands-on expertise with Arista (EOS / Etherlink) and/or Nokia (7220 IXR, 7250 IXR, 7750 SR series) platforms in production environments at scale
  • Deep understanding of modern data centre routing and control planes (BGP, OSPF, ECMP, EVPN-VXLAN)
  • Proven experience with long-haul circuits, DCI, and optical transport (dark fiber, carrier Ethernet, coherent optics, ZR/ZR+)
  • Strong background in storage networking over Ethernet and shared storage connectivity at hyperscale
  • Demonstrated ability to debug and resolve complex cross-layer issues spanning hardware, optics, routing, and application layers
  • Proven ability to lead complex technical initiatives across teams and influence strategy without direct authority
  • A systems-level mindset, balancing performance, reliability, scalability, and operational cost at the highest level
Nice to Have
  • Extensive experience with Arista or Nokia platforms at hyperscale or large AI infrastructure scale
  • Deep familiarity with front-end network design patterns for massive AI clusters (inference, management, and storage tiers)
  • Experience designing or operating large-scale DCI / long-haul optical or carrier networks
  • Strong automation and tooling experience (Python, Ansible, validation frameworks, telemetry pipelines)
  • Prior experience influencing platform or infrastructure strategy at significant scale
What We Can Offer You

At Nscale, you'll find a collaborative, supportive, and innovative environment where your contributions spark real impact. We're building something extraordinary, and we want you at the core.
  • Highly competitive package (base + equity) with reviews every 12 months.
  • Join the fastest-growing tech startup, your chance to push boundaries, collaborate with brilliant minds, and make your mark on cutting-edge AI.
  • Expect a dynamic progression plan tailored to your ambitions. Grow by trying new things, leading, challenging the status quo, and owning your impact, always with our full support.

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