Platform Engineer, Defense Unicorns
Infrastructure-as-Code
$148.8-201.3k
+ Company Stock Options
More information about location
Software for national security systems
Be an early applicant
Software for national security systems
101-200 employees
Be an early applicant
$148.8-201.3k
+ Company Stock Options
More information about location
101-200 employees
Company mission
To create software to solve the unique challenges experienced by the government.
Role
Who you are
- The ideal candidate will have a strong background in cross-functional relationship management, technical expertise, demonstrating a strong understanding of system architecture, and a passion for helping mission heroes (what we call our customers) achieve their goals with the UDS platform
- We are seeking a dynamic individual who is able to adapt and take on new responsibilities as they arise
- Possess strong proficiency with Terraform, Terraform Automation and COllaboration Software (TACOS), Kubernetes, Helm, and containerized applications, enabling robust platform deployment and management
- Proven experience as a Platform Engineer or similar role, with a focus on system architecture and development
- Strong knowledge of hybrid cloud architectures, including networking, RBAC, and storage for cloud and on-prem clusters
- Hands-on experience with Azure AKS, AWS EKS, or on-prem Kubernetes (e.g RKE2, K3s, k0s, etc.)
- Experience with Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform, OpenTofu), Helm, GitOps, and cluster provisioning and lifecycle management
- Knowledgeable about DevSecOps and CI/CD pipelines running on GitLab or GitHub
- Comfortable serving as the primary technical interface for mission heroes, providing architecture guidance, production support, and platform expertise
- Strong analytical skills and the ability to interpret complex data for informed decision-making
- Excellent communication skills and effectiveness in a remote team environment
- Self-motivated, proactive, and able to work independently with minimal supervision
- Willingness to travel as needed for on-site training and support
- DoD IAT Level II certification (such as Security+) is not required but preferred
- A DoD Secret or higher clearance is not required but preferred
What the job involves
- We are seeking a dedicated and experienced Platform Engineer with strong multi-platform Infrastructure-as-Code proficiency to join our Federal Engineering team
- This role involves managing Unicorn Delivery Service (UDS) deployments, generating training documentation, and training system integrators on our software tools
- Implement and manage Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) modules to reliably provision and configure customer environments
- Support deploying and managing UDS environments across AWS EKS, Azure AKS, and on-prem for government-backed commercial vendors
- Build and maintain custom UDS packages and application-specific modules, enabling streamlined deployment of customer environments
- Adhere to SLA commitments, including on-call support for critical UDS issues in customer environments
- Serve as the primary technical interface for System Integrators and mission heroes, providing guidance, troubleshooting, and resolution of complex UDS issues
- Develop and deliver technical training content tailored to mission hero needs, including remote and on-site sessions demonstrating platform features and best practices
- Coordinate customer onboarding and ensure smooth adoption of UDS deployments
- Gather feedback from mission heroes and the community to provide actionable insights to internal teams, improving products, services, and deployment processes
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams for improvements to capabilities and strategies for improving deployment efficiency and customer outcomes
- Analyze operational and usage data to identify trends, optimize delivery strategies, and drive process improvement
- Experiment with new tools, techniques, and technologies to improve mission outcomes
- Contribute to a culture of innovation and continuous improvement within the organization
- The listed responsibilities are not exhaustive, and additional responsibilities may be assigned based on the evolving needs of the organization
- What We Work On:
- Kubernetes
- Cloud Environments (AWS/GCP and Azure)
- Infrastructure-as-code (like Terraform/Pulumi)
- Continuous Delivery and automation tooling
- GitOps
- Containers
- CNCF projects and open source products and packages
- Helm/Kustomize-Value Stream Mapping
- Building and improving security delivery
- Building Kubernetes and cloud native applications
Our take
Military defence technology is having to adapt at a quickening pace. However, innovations in the tech sector, outdated technology, varied compute environments and complex security and compliance issues create lags in new defence technology. Defense Unicorns is an open-source tech developer aiming to minimise this lag.
Founded by former Department of Defense software engineers, Defense Unicorns uses AI and innovative software to create military technology for various uses and combat landscapes. The company is particularly focused on tech that can be used in “air-gapped” areas - those that are disconnected from the internet.
In terms of the company's future position in the market, it's notable that the US annual defence budget specifically for IT and cyber has increased to just under $59 billion in 2024. This funding growth exemplifies a rapidly changing combat landscape set against an unpredictable global backdrop, one in which Defense Unicorns has the chance to be an important player.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 3 rounds)
Jan 2026
$136m
SERIES B
Feb 2024
$35m
SERIES A
Total funding: $171.5m
Company benefits
- Medical/Dental/Vision (premiums are 100% company paid)
- Health reimbursement account
- Life insurance & disability insurance
- 401k with employer contribution (regardless of employee contribution)
- Company stock options
- Home office setup budget
- Unlimited paid time off, with a mandatory 10 days off on top of 11 federal government holidays
- Paid parental leave
- Reimbursement for approved trainings/subscriptions
- Conferences (travel, lodging, and fees)
Company HQ
Southeast Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO
Leadership
Robert Slaughter
(Co-Founder & CEO)Works as a Trainer at Project Blue. Previously the Director of DoD Platform One, a Counselor at SpaceCAMP, and worked in DevOps for the US Airforce.
Andrew Greene
(Co-Founder & Engineer)Previously worked for DoD Platform One. Was also a Software Engineer at Omitron and at SGT.
Jeff McCoy
(Co-Founder)Previously Co-Founder and CTO at Platform One, Was also CTO at SpaceCAMP, Senior Software Engineer at Defense Innovation Unit, and Co-Founder at DDS Rogue Squadron.
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