Applied Research Tech Lead, Twilio

Emerging Tech

$227.8-335k

Salary applicable to Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Vermont or Washington D.C, New York, New Jersey, Washington State and California applicants

SQL

React

AWS

JavaScript

Python

Java

Node.js

Azure

SpringBoot

Angular 14+

Expert level

Remote from US

More information about location

Cloud communications software

Be an early applicant

Cloud communications software

1001+ employees

B2BArtificial IntelligenceCommunicationInternet of ThingsMachine LearningCloud Computing

Be an early applicant

$227.8-335k

Salary applicable to Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Vermont or Washington D.C, New York, New Jersey, Washington State and California applicants

SQL

React

AWS

JavaScript

Python

Java

Node.js

Azure

SpringBoot

Angular 14+

Expert level

Remote from US

More information about location

1001+ employees

B2BArtificial IntelligenceCommunicationInternet of ThingsMachine LearningCloud Computing

Company mission

To enable innovators across every industry - from emerging leaders to the world’s largest organisations - to reinvent how companies engage with their customers.

Job

Company

Role

Who you are

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience
10+ years of professional full-stack software development experience
Proficiency across modern programming languages such as JavaScript, Python, Java or Go with the ability to select the right tool for the job
Experience building applications using front-end (React, Angular) and/or back-end (Node.js, Springboot) frameworks
Data Architecture: Solid understanding of database technologies, including both SQL and NoSQL paradigms and when to select them
Next-Gen Workflow: Mastery of an agentic coding operating model; highly effective at leveraging advanced dev tools, Model Context Protocol (MCP), and LLMs to drastically accelerate AI-assisted development
Strong problem-solving skills and a collaborative mindset with effective communication skills for technical discussions
Extreme Autonomy: Exceptional ability to navigate intense ambiguity, self-unblock execution, and ruthlessly solve ambiguous problems without requiring constant structural support
Leadership & Collaboration: Strong communication and mentorship skills, with a collaborative mindset suited for high-bandwidth technical discussions
If you are a builder driven to disrupt the status quo, reimagine what’s possible, and engineer what comes next, your journey starts here

Desirable

Hands on exposure to LLM, AI, or machine learning principles or projects
Cloud Architecture: Deep knowledge of cloud-based platforms (AWS, Azure) and the design principles of distributed systems
Ability to ramp up on new technologies, solution against well defined problems and to be iterative about building
Passion for innovation and exploring emerging technologies
Experience working in remote or globally distributed teams
Contributions to open source or tech community projects

What the job involves

Join the team as Twilio's next Applied Research Tech Lead (TL) P6 in Emerging Technologies
This position is needed to contribute hands-on technical expertise, collaborate on rapid prototyping, and develop innovative solutions as part of Twilio’s incubation team
As a Tech Lead, you’ll work closely with cross-functional partners to design and build new product ideas, leveraging modern technologies and your problem-solving abilities
This is a high-impact opportunity for growth and learning, helping Twilio experiment and stay ahead in the evolving tech landscape
You will be accountable for enabling rapid experimentation in partnership with the ETI tech lead
Welcome to Twilio Forward, the incubation lab where we push boundaries, unlock next-era growth, and turn the once-unimagined into reality
As part of our Emerging Tech team, you will pioneer Horizon-3 initiatives that fundamentally redefine how humanity interacts with artificial intelligence
From launching Ola, the world’s first agent-native communication channel, to engineering the ground-breaking Agent-to-Human (A2H) protocol, we are actively building the control room for the autonomous future
Architect & Deliver: Design, develop, and own the end-to-end implementation of high-stakes prototypes and robust, production-ready solutions
Spearhead AI R&D: Drive the technical direction and collaborate with cross-functional teams to experiment with, validate, and integrate AI, machine learning, and frontier technologies
Champion Engineering Excellence: Establish governance for code reviews and pioneer continuous improvements to engineering standards, mentoring peers to elevate overall code quality
Influence & Evangelize: Articulate complex technical concepts, architectural decisions, and project velocity clearly to executive stakeholders and engineering peers alike
Drive Agility: Navigate ambiguity and rapidly pivot technical strategies in response to shifting requirements, user feedback, and fast-paced market dynamics

Application process

Applications for this role will be accepted until July 30, 2026

Our take

Traditionally, it has been difficult for businesses to establish communications systems in-house. Twilio was founded from frustration with this expensive and cumbersome process, providing easy-to-use APIs to let businesses send and receive telephone and text communications.

From these beginnings, the company has expanded through acquisitions and product development to provide a suite of services around market data and customer engagement. It is now a market leader in this space, and has developed a customer base of more than 150,000 businesses including enterprise brands such as Deliveroo, Duolingo and Toyota.

Although aggressive expansion and lack of maturity in some of its products in the past impacted the company's efficiency, a 2023 restructuring addressed these problems and allowed it to remain competitive. The company has since focussed on profitability, streamlining decision making and R&D to put itself in good stead for future success.

Kirsty

Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle

Insights

Top investors

35% employee growth in 12 months

Glassdoor (3.9)

Company

Funding (last 2 of 6 rounds)

Jul 2015

$130m

SERIES E

Jun 2013

$70m

SERIES D

Total funding: $250.7m

Company benefits

Generous annual time off in all countries
Comprehensive health programs
Programs to help our employees plan for their retirement needs
Generous maternity, paternity, and adoption leaves, as well as family medical care leave
Build and present a Twilio app to earn your Twilio track jacket and receive $30 per month for e-books for continued learning and education
Variety of snacks, drinks, and catered meals in each of our locations
Work from home opportunities

Company HQ

Financial District, San Francisco, CA

Leadership

Khozema Shipchandler

(CEO)

Has been at the company since 2018, beginning as CFO then working as COO, President of Communications then CEO. Prior to this, spent 20 years at GE, ultimately as CCO of GE Digital.

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