Photon is seeking a skilled AI Developer (Platform + Backend) to support the design, development, and implementation of Tulip AI, Dutch Bros’ unified AI-powered employee support platform.

Tulip AI is an enterprise AI platform built to streamline support for frontline and HQ teams through intelligent automation, workflow orchestration, and AI-driven resolution experiences. The platform combines Generative AI, enterprise integrations, backend services, and workflow automation to improve operational efficiency and employee productivity.

The AI Developer will be responsible for building scalable backend services using Python and FastAPI, integrating AI capabilities, developing APIs, and supporting AI orchestration workflows across the platform. The role requires strong hands-on experience in backend engineering, cloud-native development, API integrations, and modern AI application development.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable backend services using Python and FastAPI.

• Build and integrate AI-powered services, APIs, and workflow orchestration components.

• Develop RESTful APIs and microservices for frontend, mobile, and enterprise integrations.

• Integrate Generative AI services, LLMs, vector databases, and semantic search capabilities.

• Support implementation of agentic AI workflows and intelligent automation processes.

• Work with enterprise systems including HR, IT, identity, and operational platforms.

• Develop secure, scalable, and high-performance backend architectures.

• Implement asynchronous processing, event-driven communication, and API integrations.

• Collaborate with frontend, mobile, DevOps, product, and AI engineering teams.

• Support cloud-native deployments using containers and Kubernetes.

• Write clean, maintainable, and testable code with proper documentation and testing practices.

• Participate in code reviews, debugging, monitoring, and production support activities.

• Contribute to CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and engineering best practices.

Qualifications

Need to Have

• 5+ years of experience in backend or platform engineering.

• Strong hands-on expertise in Python and FastAPI development.

• Experience building REST APIs, microservices, and backend integration services.

• Experience working with Generative AI, LLM APIs, AI orchestration frameworks, or AI-powered applications.

• Strong understanding of distributed systems and cloud-native application development.

• Experience with databases such as PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis, or vector databases.

• Knowledge of asynchronous programming and event-driven architectures.

• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.

• Strong understanding of API security, authentication, and authorization mechanisms.

• Familiarity with Git-based workflows and Agile development practices.

• Strong debugging, problem-solving, and communication skills.

Good to Have

• Experience with RAG architectures, semantic search, and vector databases.

• Exposure to LangChain, LlamaIndex, OpenAI APIs, or similar AI frameworks.

• Experience with Kafka, RabbitMQ, or messaging/event-streaming platforms.

• Familiarity with Flutter/mobile integrations and frontend-backend communication.

• Experience in QSR, retail, hospitality, or enterprise digital platforms.

• Exposure to workflow automation and enterprise orchestration systems.

• Experience with observability, monitoring, and logging tools.

• Understanding of AI governance, prompt engineering, and AI evaluation frameworks.

Compensation, Benefits and Duration

Minimum Compensation: USD 56,000

Maximum Compensation: USD 196,000

Compensation is based on actual experience and qualifications of the candidate. The above is a reasonable and a good faith estimate for the role.

Medical, vision, and dental benefits, 401k retirement plan, variable pay/incentives, paid time off, and paid holidays are available for full time employees.

This position is available for independent contractors

No applications will be considered if received more than 120 days after the date of this post