Engineering Manager, Istari
Data and Infrastructure
$170-230k
+ Company Stock Options
More information about location
Digital twin technology
Be an early applicant
Digital twin technology
21-100 employees
Be an early applicant
$170-230k
+ Company Stock Options
More information about location
21-100 employees
Company mission
To make digital engineering ecosystems a reality where all technologies are created digitally, free from real-world costs, schedules, and environmental impacts.
Role
Who you are
- 7+ years of software engineering experience, including 2+ years leading technical teams
- Experience leading teams managing infrastructure technologies like Kubernetes, ArgoCD, Postgres and other databases
- Background in managing distributed systems, databases, and data infrastructure (stateful systems strongly preferred)
- Experience delivering and supporting self-hosted or on-prem enterprise software
- Solid AWS experience (EKS, VPC networking, IAM, and related services preferred)
- Must be a US citizen living within the United States
Desirable
- Experience with developing database technologies - graph databases in particular
- Knowledge of cybersecurity and compliance frameworks such as NIST, CMMC, or FedRAMP
- Experience supporting ITAR or other restricted federal environments
- Familiarity with IaC tools (e.g., Terraform), service meshes, and observability stacks
What the job involves
- We are seeking an Engineering Manager – Data & Infrastructure to lead the team responsible for the core data layer and operational foundation of the Istari platform
- This team owns our open-source graph database (Dgraph), Kubernetes deployments, installation tooling for self-hosted customers, and the infrastructure required to operate in ITAR-restricted spaces
- This role blends hands-on technical leadership with people management, guiding engineers while setting direction for secure, reliable, and scalable data and infrastructure capabilities
- Leadership & Execution: Lead, mentor, and develop a team focused on data systems, DevOps, and infrastructure reliability
- Drive technical strategy and ensure consistent, high-quality execution across all team initiatives. Collaborate closely with product and security leadership to set roadmap priorities
- Data Platform Ownership: Oversee all engineering work related to Dgraph, including modifications to core database functionality, CI/CD pipelines, documentation and incident response
- Assist in managing the open source community around Dgraph. Work across the team to develop a roadmap and priorities for Dgraph’s evolution
- Infrastructure & Deployments: Mentor and guide a team improving Istari’s Kubernetes-based platform, including Argo CD, Helm charts, and deployment automation. Manage a roadmap for technical improvements to customer installation tooling, monitoring, and observability
- Lead the team in planning and executing deployments into ITAR-controlled and other restricted environments, ensuring all compliance requirements are met. Partner with security teams on architecture reviews, risk mitigation, and secure-by-default practices
Our take
In the realm of digital engineering, industries like aerospace, defense, and manufacturing face significant challenges. Traditional methods lof designing, testing, and certifiying complex systems are often time-consuming, costly, and environmentally tacxing. These processes typically require physical prototypes and extensive real-world testing, leading to delays and increased resource consumption.
Istari is transforming this landscape by developing aplatform that enables the creation, testing, and certification of technologies entirely in the digital real. Its advanced digital twin technology allows for virtual simulations and modeling, reducing the need for physical prototypes. This approach not only accelerates development timelines but also minimized costs and environmental impact.
Its making major progress too, including the $19M contract with the US Air Force to help develop the world's first digitally certified aircraft. While the use of digital twins in military applications (especially with potential links to autonomous systems) can raise valid ethical concerns, Istari's focus is on safety, precision, and reducing the need for real-world testing that can be risky or wasteful. By improving how complex systems are designed and certifies, its aiming to make engineering across industries more efficient and sustainable.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Company
Funding (1 round)
Feb 2023
$13m
SEED
Total funding: $13m
Company benefits
- Medical insurance
- Dental and Vision coverage
- 401(k)
- Flexible paid time off
- All positions are eligible for remote work
- 11 paid holidays
- Generous technology stipend for optimizing your home office
Company HQ
East Cambridge, Cambridge, MA
Leadership
Will Roper
(CEO)Member of the Defense Innovation Board. Distinguished Professor of the Practice at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Advisor and Board Member at a number of companies.
Christopher Benson
(CTO)Senior Systems Engineer with the US Air Force. Previously founded ELLO, AFWERX, StartLabs, and Ring Theory.
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