engineering
Posted 2 weeks agoManager I, Engineering - Applied AI - Natural Language & Conversational Interfaces
at Datadoghq
New York, United StatesHybrid
Responsibilities
- Lead and develop a team of engineers and applied scientists focused on building the foundations for agents operating at scale
- Own end-to-end delivery of high-quality AI systems, from early research exploration to production-grade reliability, with high standards for operational excellence, system reliability, and technical quality
- Drive evaluation and iteration practices for AI systems: define the quality bar and guide the team in building the offline and online evaluation pipelines needed to measure quality and detect drift
- Support career growth for engineers through coaching, feedback, and fostering a culture of experimentation, innovation, and learning.
Requirements
- Applied AI is where Datadog's ambitious AI bets get built and shipped ( Bits Chat , updog ).
- We sit at the intersection of research and product: turning promising capabilities from Datadog AI Research lab and the research community into production systems that reach real customers.
- Current bets span agents that run autonomously at scale, context and memory layers that make those agents more intelligent over time, and tools that help customers build and validate AI-native services in production.
- As an Engineering Manager I in Applied AI, you will lead a team of engineers and applied scientists working on one of these challenges.
- You will define technical direction, run short feedback loops, make deliberate decisions about what to pursue or stop, and work closely with product managers, research teams, and cross-functional partners to ship AI capabilities that matter.
- Navigate the unique challenges of shipping AI-powered products: balancing quality, latency, cost, and safety considerations.
- Contribute to cross-team collaboration and knowledge sharing across the broader AI organization
- experience leading and mentoring engineers, able to develop strong engineering talent in a fast-moving domain
- A technical leader with deep expertise in one or more areas of AI or machine learning: large language models, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), semantic search, agentic systems, deep learning, or NLP
- Well-versed in evaluation methodologies for AI systems, both offline benchmarks and online metrics
- Experience taking AI products from 0 to 1 is strongly valued: able to bring structure to early-stage work by scoping clear hypotheses, moving quickly toward signal, and making deliberate decisions about what to pursue, pivot, or stop
- BS/MS/PhD in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent professional experience
- An inclusive company culture with the ability to join Community Guilds (Datadog employee resource groups)
- Datadog is the leading observability and security platform for the AI era, providing businesses with unified visibility across the technology stack to manage complexity at scale.
- It brings applications, infrastructure, data, models, and security into one place, using AI to detect and resolve issues before they impact customers.
- Trusted globally by Fortune 500 companies and high-growth AI leaders, Datadog enables businesses to move faster with clarity and confidence.
- Learn more about #DatadogLife on Instagram , LinkedIn, and Datadog Learning Center.
Benefits
- New hire stock equity (RSUs) and employee stock purchase plan (ESPP)
- Datadog offers a competitive salary and equity package, and may include variable compensation.
- Actual compensation is based on factors such as the candidate's skills, qualifications, and experience.
- benefits for this role including healthcare, dental, parental planning, and mental health benefits, a 401(k) plan and match, paid time off, fitness reimbursements, and a discounted employee stock purchase plan.
- The reasonably estimated yearly salary for this role at Datadog is: $192,000 — $240,000 USD
Additional details
- The team builds the foundations for agentic systems capable of operating at scale in complex production environments.
- The mandate is to move fast from idea to customer impact, and when a product finds its footing, to set it up for growth.
- At Datadog, we place value in our office culture, the relationships and collaboration it builds and the creativity it brings.
- We operate as a hybrid workplace to ensure our Datadogs can create a work-life harmony that best fits them.
- Work closely with product managers, research teams, and cross-functional partners to shape the team's bets from initial framing through to broader adoption, with a clear definition of success criteria at each stage
- Participate in hiring and help shape the future team as the organization grows Who You Are
- A strong product instinct: able to anchor early-stage work in concrete customer problems, define success criteria before writing code, and actively contribute to shaping product direction alongside product and research partners •
- Datadog values people from all walks of life. We understand not everyone will meet all the above
- qualifications on day one — that's okay. If you're passionate about technology and want to grow your skills, we encourage you to apply. Benefits and Growth
- Continuous professional development, product training, and career pathing