Lead - AI Backend Developer

RIBU is a leading visual content and creative production company powering brands worldwide with high volume, high quality creatives at speed and scale. With expertise across premium photography, post-production, CGI, GCC, content automation, and AI-driven solutions, RIBU delivers integrated creative ecosystems tailored for modern commerce. Backed by a growing global footprint, RIBU partners with brands to move seamlessly from brief to deployment, faster, smarter, and at scale. Job Overview: Do you thrive in a dynamic environment, want to be part of a small core team, and love owning what you build end-to-end? We are looking for a Lead AI Backend Engineer who can own backend architecture, guide a high-performing engineering team, and build scalable distributed systems, AI-powered platforms, search capabilities, and high-performance media workflows.

Key Responsibilities: 

• Lead the design, development, and maintenance of secure, scalable backend services using Python, PostgreSQL, and AWS serverless technologies (Lambda, API Gateway, SQS, SNS, etc.) 
• Own backend architecture for workflow, AI, search, and media management platforms, ensuring reliability, extensibility, and long-term scalability
•  Lead AI-native backend capabilities including agent orchestration, workflow automation, human-in-the-loop processes, and AI service integrations 
• Define and guide search capabilities including metadata search, full-text search, semantic retrieval, and vector-based experiences Architect services for high-volume image and video movement across cloud and on premise environments 
•  Drive integrations with storage systems, DAM platforms, file transfer services, and third party applications 
•  Establish engineering standards for performance, scalability, reliability, security, observability, testing, and code quality 
•  Collaborate closely with Product, Frontend, DevOps, AI/ML, QA, and leadership teams to translate business goals into technical execution plans 
•  Mentor backend engineers, review designs and code, unblock the team, and foster a culture of ownership and technical excellence Contribute to hiring, roadmap planning, technical prioritization, and delivery planning for backend initiatives 

 Note: This job description outlines the primary duties and responsibilities associated with this position, but additional tasks may be assigned as needed to support the organization's goals and objectives.

Qualifications and Skills: 

• 7–12 years of backend development experience, preferably building and scaling SaaS products 
• Proven experience leading backend engineering initiatives, mentoring engineers, and influencing architecture decisions Strong expertise in Python and modern backend frameworks such as Flask or FastAPI 
• Strong proficiency in PostgreSQL or similar relational databases, including schema design, query optimization, performance tuning, and data modeling 
• Deep experience designing scalable REST APIs, event-driven systems, and distributed architectures 
• Hands-on experience with AWS serverless services, cloud-native architectures, and production-grade operational practices 
• Experience building AI-enabled applications, integrating LLMs, AI services, or agentic workflows in production environments 
•  Experience with search technologies such as OpenSearch, Elasticsearch, PostgreSQL Full Text Search, or vector search platforms 
• Experience building backend services for image, video, or digital asset workflows Familiarity with file transfer protocols and technologies including FTP, SFTP, multipart uploads, cloud object storage, and hybrid cloud/on-prem architectures 
• Strong ownership mindset with the ability to lead execution in a fast-paced, ambiguous, and high-growth environment 
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to align technical and non-technical stakeholders