Director AI Networking

Job Type: Full-time | Location: Sydney, NSW | Department: Network | Reporting to: Vice President, Network Engineering | Work Location Type: #onsite

IREN is a vertically integrated AI Cloud provider, delivering large-scale data centers and GPU clusters for AI training and inference. IREN’s platform is underpinned by its expansive portfolio of grid-connected land and power in renewable-rich regions across North America, Europe and APAC. 

With 100% renewable energy, we build, own and operate our data centers and take pride in being at the forefront of sustainable solutions for the ever-evolving applications of high-performance compute. We believe that human progress is invaluable, but it should be done in the right way – responsibly, sustainably and having a positive impact on the communities we operate in. 

We have grown substantially since 2019, from our inception in Australia to now having several facilities across North America and being listed on NASDAQ… and we are just getting started! By joining us, you will be contributing to the future of sustainable high-performance compute and the local communities we strive to have a positive impact on.   

Our Network Engineering team builds the networks that power AI at scale. We design and run the high-performance fabrics that connect tens of thousands of GPUs, the backbone and WAN that link our campuses across continents, and the facilities networks that keep our data centres safe and running. Our work spans all aspects of network engineering for IREN, from the data centre and core to the WAN and peering edge.

As Director, AI Networking you will be a senior hands-on technical authority and thought leader in Network Engineering, with a focus on the networks behind our AI clusters. This is primarily an individual contributor role, with some people leadership. You will set the engineering bar for how our networks are built, changed and operated, own routing and traffic policy across the estate, and lead the response when it matters most.

Responsibilities

• Set and enforce engineering standards for configuration, naming, change control and operational practice across every site, including our AI and GPU fabrics.
• Own BGP and traffic engineering policy, including transit, peering and failover behaviour across the backbone and edge.
• Act as the top escalation point for major incidents, leading root-cause analysis and making sure fixes stick.
• Review and approve high-risk changes, method-of-procedure documents and new site and AI cluster builds before they go live.
• Drive operational rigour: monitoring, alerting, runbooks and post-incident learning.
• Lead our network-as-code approach: automate how the network is designed, deployed, validated and operated, so that every change is generated, tested and rolled out through software.
• Write and review production code yourself, and set the software practices the team follows, including Git, code review, automated testing, CI/CD and the use of AI tools.
• Work hands-on in the network, from AI fabric bring-up to edge routing and firewall policy.
• Partner with network architecture to turn the target design into build standards engineers can follow.
• Shape IREN's AI networking direction: evaluate new technologies, write the designs and standards others build on, and represent our AI networking with vendors, partners and the wider industry.
• Lead a small team, and mentor and grow senior and mid-level engineers across our global team.

Requirements

• Extensive experience as a senior or principal engineer, or engineering leader, in large data centre, carrier, cloud or AI networks.
• Expert-level MPLS and traffic engineering, including segment routing, with deep BGP, OSPF or IS-IS, VXLAN and EVPN skills.
• Expert ability to configure, test, validate and troubleshoot large-scale HPC and AI networks, from Ethernet and GPU fabrics to firewalls and WAN links.
• Deep experience across network platforms such as Cisco, Juniper and Arista.
• Strong software engineering experience, with a track record of writing network automation and code to design, provision and operate networks and systems at scale, in languages such as Python or Go, and of applying AI to network operations.
• Experience with NVIDIA Spectrum networking at scale, HPC architectures, cluster management such as NVIDIA Base Command Manager or Run: AI, and GPU platforms such as NVIDIA DGX, CUDA and the Network and GPU Operators is highly regarded.
• A track record of building change management and operational discipline in fast-growing teams.
• Calm, decisive leadership during incidents and clear communication afterwards.
• The credibility to coach engineers and to challenge designs constructively.

Benefits

• Competitive salary range finalized based on experience and impact
• Short and long-term incentive programs designed to reward both results and long term company success 

We value diverse perspectives and believe that skills can be developed. If you’re passionate about this role, we want to hear from you — whether you meet every criteria or not. Your unique experiences might be exactly what we need! 

IREN is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to creating an inclusive workplace. We are committed to evaluating qualified applicants and do not discriminate against protected characteristics under applicable legislation. This job will remain posted until filled. While we appreciate all applications we receive, we are only able to contact candidates under consideration.  

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