Senior Software Engineer, Chef Robotics

• This role requires expertise in database optimization, API framework implementation, and a deep understanding of how to architect systems that enable real-time robotics operations
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent practical experience
• 7+ years of professional experience in backend development roles with demonstrated leadership experience
• Expert knowledge of relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL) including schema design, optimization, and administration
• Strong proficiency with Python and JavaScript/TypeScript with advanced software engineering skills
• Extensive experience leading projects with at least two web frameworks: Flask, FastAPI, Django, Node.js, or Next.js
• Proven experience designing and implementing RESTful and GraphQL APIs at scale
• Advanced understanding of containerization (Docker) and orchestration (Kubernetes) technologies
• Experience with cloud infrastructure and deployment (AWS, GCP, or Azure) in production environments
• Proven experience leading complex backend projects and mentoring junior engineers
• Understanding of data requirements for robotics or automation systems
• Experience with real-time or near-real-time systems and high-performance backend architecture
• Background in developing secure, reliable systems with high availability requirements
• Knowledge of CI/CD practices and infrastructure-as-code principles
• Familiarity with AI/ML deployment workflows and requirements
• Strong leadership and mentoring skills with ability to drive technical initiatives
• Excellence in technical communication with ability to explain complex systems to diverse audiences
• Proactive mindset in identifying potential issues and implementing scalable solutions
• Comfort with working in a fast-paced startup environment with startup-oriented hours
• Commitment to working onsite five days a week to contribute to positive in-office culture
• Passion for robotics and automation technology
• Collaborative approach to cross-functional engineering teams
• Knowledge of ROS (Robot Operating System) or similar frameworks

Desirable

• As a Senior Software Engineer, Backend specializing in database architecture and AI systems, you'll lead the design, implementation, and maintenance of the robust backend services that power our robotics platform
• You'll work at the intersection of data management, API development, and AI integration to build scalable solutions that support our robotics systems across customer deployments
• As a senior engineer, you'll mentor team members and drive technical decision-making for backend infrastructure
• Lead the design, implementation, and optimization of database schemas to support robot operations, telemetry, recipe management, and system analytics
• Develop robust data migration strategies and version control for database schema evolution
• Implement efficient query optimization and indexing strategies to support high-throughput robot operations
• Establish data integrity protocols and backup systems to ensure operational continuity across customer deployments
• Create scalable data access layers that balance security, performance, and maintainability
• Mentor team members on database design patterns and optimization techniques
• Lead the development and maintenance of scalable APIs to serve robot control systems, dashboards, and monitoring tools
• Design and implement secure authentication and authorization mechanisms across backend services
• Develop robust middleware for processing and validating data between robotics subsystems
• Create service interfaces that enable efficient communication between robotics components and cloud services
• Collaborate with frontend and robotics engineers to ensure cohesive integration of backend services
• Establish API design standards and best practices for the engineering team
• Lead implementation of backend services that support machine learning pipelines for robot vision and motion planning
• Develop sophisticated APIs for model deployment, monitoring, and version management across robotics fleets
• Create efficient data storage and retrieval systems for training datasets and inference results
• Design and implement systems to collect and process performance metrics from AI components
• Collaborate with ML engineers to optimize data flow for training and inference processes
• Drive architecture decisions for AI/ML infrastructure and scalability
• Lead implementation of comprehensive logging, monitoring, and alerting for backend systems
• Develop diagnostic tools and dashboards for operational visibility across distributed robotics deployments
• Establish performance benchmarks and optimize systems to meet latency requirements for real-time operations
• Implement fault-tolerant design patterns to ensure reliability in production environments
• Create and maintain technical documentation for backend systems and mentor team on best practices
• Drive technical initiatives for system scalability and performance optimization
• Key Projects You'll Lead:
• Designing and implementing scalable database architecture for multi-site robotics deployments
• Leading development of real-time APIs for robotics control and monitoring systems
• Architecting AI/ML infrastructure for model deployment and performance monitoring
• Establishing backend system reliability and performance monitoring frameworks
• Mentoring engineering team on backend best practices and system design principles