Sr. Software Development Engineer-AI Security

About Zscaler

Zscaler accelerates digital transformation to ensure our customers can be more agile efficient resilient and secure. As an AI-forward enterprise we are constantly pushing the envelope leveraging the worlds largest security data lake to power our cloud-native Zero Trust Exchange platform. This innovation protects our customers from cyberattacks and data loss by securely connecting users devices and applications in any location.

Here impact in your role matters more than title and trust is built on results. We say impact over activity. We seek innovators who actively use AI to amplify their impact and who thrive in an environment where we leverage intelligent systems to stay ahead of evolving threats. We believe in transparency and value constructive honest debatewere focused on getting to the best ideas faster. We build high-performing teams that can make an impact quickly and with high quality. To do this we are building a culture of execution centered on customer obsession collaboration ownership and accountability.

We value high-impact high-accountability with a sense of urgency where youre enabled to do your best work and embrace your potential. If youre driven by purpose thrive on solving complex challenges and want to be part of the team thats helping to secure the AI age we invite you to bring your talents to Zscaler and help shape the future of cybersecurity.

Role

We are looking for a Senior Software Development Engineer-AI Security to join our team. This is a Hybrid role reporting to the Director of Software Engineering in the Emerging Tech department. You will build a high-reliability low-latency AI security solution capable of scaling to hundreds of millions of this role you will be crucial in enhancing security capabilities for the AI within the worlds largest cloud security platform by designing and implementing core infrastructure components and distributed systems while collaborating closely with stakeholders throughout the development lifecycle.

What youll do (Role Expectations)

• Develop high-performance networking code for multiple desktop platforms using the Rust language and platform-native APIs

• Improve code quality through building solid testable and well-documented software foundations

• Design and implement major development projects with a focus on scalability security and performance

• Collaborate with product managers and cross-functional teams to deliver customer-impacting features

• Debug and solve complex network-related problems and enhance system functionality

Who You Are (Success Profile)

• You thrive in ambiguity. Youre comfortable building the path as you walk it. You thrive in a dynamic environment seeing ambiguity not as a hindrance but as the raw material to build something meaningful.

• You act like an owner. Your passion for the mission fuels your bias for action. You operate with integrity because you genuinely care about the outcome. True ownership involves leveraging dynamic range: the ability to navigate seamlessly between high-level strategy and hands-on execution.

• You are a problem-solver. You love running towards the challenges because you are laser-focused on finding the solution knowing that solving the hard problems delivers the biggest impact.

• You are a high-trust collaborator. You are ambitious for the team not just yourself. You embrace our challenge culture by giving and receiving ongoing feedbackknowing that candor delivered with clarity and respect is the truest form of teamwork and the fastest way to earn trust.

• You are a learner. You have a true growth mindset and are obsessed with your own development actively seeking feedback to become a better partner and a stronger teammate. You love what you do and you do it with purpose.

What Were Looking for (Minimum Qualifications)

• Foundational understanding of AI/ML technologies and experience leveraging securing or positioning AI-driven solutions to optimize outcomes within your functional domain

• Bachelors degree in computer science engineering or a related field

• 3 years of software engineering experience with deep expertise in the Rust programming language and familiarity with lower-level languages such as C/C

• Strong knowledge of system and network programming including firewalls VPNs protocols TCP/IP UDP DNS QUIC H/3 and proxies

• Familiarity with system concepts such as virtual memory multi-threading system APIs SLM/LLM models and excellent debugging and problem-solving skills in both networking and system-level contexts

What Will Make You Stand Out (Preferred Qualifications)

• Deep understanding of AI security frameworks threat modeling for large language models and mitigating vulnerabilities unique to AI-driven architectures

• Familiarity with DevOps pipelines VPN technologies and a strong understanding of security protocols and standards

• Experience writing testable low-complexity code with dependency injection proficiency in Swift or Python and direct experience validating AI-driven products using MLOps principles

#LI-Hybrid #LI-YC2

At Zscaler we are committed to building a team that reflects the communities we serve and the customers we work with. We foster an inclusive environment that values all backgrounds and perspectives emphasizing collaboration and belonging. Join us in our mission to make doing business seamless and secure.

Our Benefits program is one of the most important ways we support our employees. Zscaler proudly offers comprehensive and inclusive benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families throughout their life stages including:

By applying for this role you adhere to applicable laws regulations and Zscaler policies including those related to security and privacy standards and guidelines.

Zscaler is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. We strive to create a workplace where employees are treated with respect and have the chance to succeed. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race color religion sex (including pregnancy or related medical conditions) age national origin sexual orientation gender identity or expression genetic information disability status protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal state or local laws. See more information by clicking on the Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal link.

Pay Transparency

Zscaler complies with all applicable federal state and local pay transparency rules.

Zscaler is committed to providing reasonable support (called accommodations or adjustments) in our recruiting processes for candidates who are differently abled have long term conditions mental health conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs or who are neurodivergent or require pregnancy-related support.