Senior Backend Engineer role designing low-latency voice pipelines for conversational AI platform, using Python and Node.js with real-time audio streaming and telephony integrations in Hyderabad.

About the Company

Interactly.ai is a growth-stage startup building a conversational AI platform focused on real-time audio and voice systems. The company operates with a global team spanning India and the US, working on high-impact infrastructure that powers low-latency, high-reliability voice interactions. Engineers here own critical components from the ground up and have the opportunity to influence architecture and technical direction early in the company's lifecycle. Interactly.ai is committed to career progression, offering clear paths to Staff and Principal Engineering roles.

Role Overview

We are seeking a Senior Backend Engineer to design, build, and operate low-latency, highly reliable voice and audio pipelines that power our conversational AI platform. This role requires deep hands-on experience with real-time audio streaming, speech-to-text (STT), text-to-speech (TTS), and telephony integrations, using Python and Node.js in production environments. You will play a critical role in building scalable, fault-tolerant systems for high-volume voice interactions. The ideal candidate has 4+ years of backend engineering experience with a strong focus on real-time systems, and is comfortable owning production deployments, on-call rotations, and incident response for voice systems.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and operate real-time audio processing pipelines for conversational voice agents.
• Build and maintain backend services using Python (FastAPI/async frameworks) and Node.js for low-latency workflows.
• Implement bi-directional audio streaming using WebSockets, WebRTC, or similar protocols.
• Integrate and optimize Speech-to-Text (STT) and Text-to-Speech (TTS) engines (cloud-based or self-hosted).
• Build and maintain telephony integrations (inbound/outbound calling, call routing, call recording, DTMF, conferencing).
• Optimize audio latency, jitter, and reliability across distributed systems.
• Handle high-concurrency workloads and real-time session state management.
• Implement monitoring, logging, and alerting for voice pipelines and call flows.
• Collaborate with AI/LLM teams to integrate speech pipelines with conversational logic.
• Own production deployments, on-call rotations, and incident response for voice systems.

Tech Stack

• Languages: Python (FastAPI, async frameworks), Node.js
• Real-Time Protocols: WebSockets, WebRTC, RTP-based streaming, bi-directional audio streaming
• Audio & Speech: STT/TTS engines (cloud/self-hosted), audio codecs (Opus, PCM, μ-law), audio sampling strategies
• Telephony: SIP, PSTN, inbound/outbound calling, call routing, call recording, DTMF, conferencing
• Infrastructure: Docker, CI/CD pipelines, AWS or GCP
• Message Queues & State Stores: Redis or similar
• Other: Asynchronous programming, event-driven architectures, high-concurrency workload management, real-time session state management

Application Questions (must be answered):

1. How many years of Total experience do you have?
2. How many years of Python (FastAPI, asynchronous frameworks) experience?
3. How many years of Node.js experience?
4. How many years of Real-Time & Audio Streaming Protocols experience? (WebSockets, WebRTC, RTP, bi-directional streaming, latency/jitter optimization)
5. How many years of Speech & Audio Technologies experience? (STT, TTS, audio codecs, sampling)
6. How many years of Telephony & Communications Infrastructure experience? (SIP, PSTN, call routing, recording, DTMF, conferencing)
7. How many years of Backend & Systems Architecture experience? (async programming, event-driven, high-concurrency, session management, distributed debugging)
8. How many years of AI & Conversational Systems experience?
9. How many years of Cloud, DevOps & Operations experience?
10. What is your current notice period?

Work Location: In-person (Hyderabad).

4+ years of backend engineering experience with a strong focus on real-time systems; strong hands-on experience with Python (FastAPI/async) and Node.js in production; proven experience building real-time audio or voice applications; deep understanding of STT/TTS pipelines, audio codecs, and streaming concepts; solid experience integrating telephony platforms (SIP, PSTN); experience with WebSockets, WebRTC, or RTP-based streaming; strong understanding of asynchronous programming and event-driven architectures; experience with Docker and CI/CD pipelines; ability to debug and optimize distributed latency-sensitive systems. Nice-to-have: LLM-powered voice assistants, conversational AI, audio codecs (Opus, PCM, μ-law), cloud infrastructure (AWS/GCP), message queues, Redis, prior healthcare/contact center/telecom domain experience.

High-impact role owning mission-critical voice infrastructure; challenging engineering problems building low-latency real-time AI systems; growth-stage startup influencing architecture and technical direction; global collaboration with India- and US-based teams; career progression to Staff or Principal Engineering roles.