Application Guide
How to Apply for Software Engineer (Backend-Focused)
at AZX, PBC.
🏢 About AZX, PBC.
AZX, PBC. is a profitable, bootstrapped public benefit corporation founded in 2024, focused on AI transformation in critical industries like clean energy, real estate, and logistics. They work with category leaders and are building a long-term company for those passionate about AI and positive impact.
About This Role
This role is the technical backbone of AZX's inference and evaluation systems, involving GPU scheduling, autoscaling, and serving infrastructure for vLLM/SGLang, as well as building evaluation systems to measure model and prompt improvements. It's high-leverage and offers architectural ownership over hard ML infrastructure problems.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve designing a new autoscaling policy for GPU clusters, implementing a service to evaluate model outputs, or collaborating with data scientists to optimize prompt performance. You'd also be monitoring system health, writing code, and participating in technical discussions with the team.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who AZX, PBC. Is Looking For
- Experienced with serving frameworks like vLLM or SGLang and GPU cluster management (e.g., Kubernetes, Ray).
- Strong background in backend engineering, with proficiency in Python and experience building scalable, low-latency APIs.
- Deep understanding of ML model evaluation, including offline and online metrics, A/B testing, and prompt engineering.
- Comfortable with ambiguity and able to set technical direction in a fast-growing startup environment.
📝 Tips for Applying to AZX, PBC.
Tailor your resume to highlight specific projects involving vLLM/SGLang, GPU optimization, or large-scale inference systems, not just generic backend work.
In your cover letter, mention how your experience aligns with AZX's mission of positive impact in clean energy or other critical industries.
Show tangible results: quantify improvements in latency, throughput, or cost reduction from your previous infrastructure work.
If possible, contribute to or reference open-source projects related to inference serving or evaluation tools to demonstrate expertise.
Research AZX's clients (CBRE, LevelTen Energy, Flexe) and mention how your work could help solve their industry-specific challenges.
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
["Emphasize your passion for AI's potential to drive positive impact in critical industries like energy and climate.", 'Highlight your experience with large-scale ML systems, especially inference optimization and evaluation frameworks.', "Mention your ability to take ownership of complex infrastructure and set technical direction, aligning with the role's high-leverage nature.", "Show that you're aligned with AZX's values as a public benefit corporation and their focus on long-term success."]
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → Read AZX's website and any public materials to understand their AI transformation approach and industries they serve.
- → Look up their clients (CBRE, LevelTen Energy, Flexe) to understand the types of challenges they solve.
- → Research public benefit corporation status and what it means for AZX's mission and operations.
- → Familiarize yourself with the latest in inference serving (vLLM, SGLang) and evaluation frameworks (e.g., LangSmith, MLflow) to speak knowledgeably.
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Don't apply with a generic resume that doesn't highlight ML infrastructure or backend experience specifically.
- Avoid focusing only on model training; this role is about serving and evaluation, not training.
- Don't underestimate the importance of the company's mission; they likely value candidates who care about positive impact, not just technical challenges.
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!