Developer & Community Programs Manager

Lightning AI is the company reimagining the way AI is built. After creating and releasing PyTorch Lightning in 2019, Lightning AI was launched to reshape the development of artificial intelligence products for commercial and academic use.

We are on a mission to simplify AI development, making it accessible to everyone—from solo researchers to large enterprises. By removing the complexity of building and deploying AI tools, we empower innovators to focus on solving real-world problems. Our platform is built to scale with the latest AI advancements while staying intuitive and adaptable, so you can bring your ideas to life.

We have offices in New York City, San Francisco, and London and are backed by investors such as Coatue, Index Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, and Firstminute.

• Move Fast: We act with speed and precision, breaking down big challenges into achievable steps.

• Focus: We complete one goal at a time with care, collaborating as a team to deliver features with precision.

• Balance: Sustained performance comes from rest and recovery. We ensure a healthy work-life balance to keep you at your best.

• Craftsmanship: Innovation through excellence. Every detail matters, and we take pride in mastering our craft.

• Minimal: Simplicity drives our innovation. We eliminate complexity through discipline and focus on what truly matters.

What We're Looking For

We’re looking for a Developer & Community Programs Manager to join the Lightning AI team. In this role, you’ll be responsible for growing and supporting our developer community, running events and programs that drive awareness and adoption, and amplifying our presence across social channels. You’ll be instrumental in making Lightning AI the go-to platform for the ML and MLOps community by engaging with developers where they are, producing content that resonates, and executing programs that bring our products to life.

You’ll join the Marketing Team and report to our Chief Creative Officer. This is a hybrid role based in our San Francisco office with in-office requirements of 2 days per week. The salary range for this role is $110,000–$135,000.

What You’ll Do

• Own and grow Lightning AI’s developer-facing community across forums, social platforms, and support channels
• Plan, manage, and attend events including meetups, conferences, hackathons, and virtual gatherings to drive community engagement and brand visibility
• Run programs and campaigns to educate and activate users—from product launches and onboarding content to spotlight features and customer use cases
• Manage Lightning’s social media accounts (Twitter/X, LinkedIn, Reddit) with an authentic voice tailored to developers and technical audiences
• Coordinate with internal teams (engineering, product, marketing) to surface community insights, share product feedback, and align messaging
• Source and manage partnerships with co-marketing collaborators, developer communities, and ecosystem projects
• Track community and campaign performance through metrics and KPIs, sharing insights to guide future efforts
• Create or collaborate on engaging content such as blog posts, social media threads, short videos, and guides to showcase Lightning’s capabilities
• Serve as a connector between our developer users and internal teams—surfacing needs, sharing wins, and helping drive adoption

What You’ll Need

• Hands-on experience engaging with developer or open-source communities (forums, Discord, Reddit, GitHub, etc.)
• Proven ability to manage social media accounts for technical audiences, with a knack for turning product updates into engaging posts
• Strong program execution skills—able to own logistics for events, campaigns, or community initiatives
• Experience attending or organizing developer events (e.g., hackathons, conferences, workshops)
• Ability to translate technical concepts into clear, compelling content
• Ability to write code in python/golang
• Familiarity with the MLOps, machine learning, or developer tools ecosystem (you don’t need to be an expert, but you should know the landscape)
• Collaborative, organized, and excited to be the glue between our team and our community

Benefits and Perks

We offer competitive base salaries and stock options with a 25% one year cliff and monthly vesting thereafter. For our international employees, we work with Velocity Global to pay you in your local currency and provide equitable benefits across the globe.

In the US, we offer:

• Medical, dental and vision
• Life and AD&D insurance 
• Flexible paid time off plus 1 week of winter closure
• Generous paid family leave benefits
• $500 monthly meal reimbursement, including groceries & food delivery services
• $500 one time home office stipend
• $1,000 annual learning & development stipend 
• 100% Citibike membership (NYC only)
• $45/month gym membership 
• Additional various medical and mental health services

At Lightning AI, we are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We believe that diverse teams drive innovation and create better products. We provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. We are dedicated to building a culture where everyone can thrive and contribute to their fullest potential.