Senior Backend Engineer – Autonomous Networks

About the role

Join Zinkworks' small, empowered product discovery team focused on the Autonomous Networks portfolio. As a Senior Backend Engineer you will own the server‑side foundations of early‑stage prototypes, working closely with AI engineers to bridge Python back‑ends and agent‑driven systems.

Key responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain backend services, APIs, and data layers for product discovery probes and working prototypes.
• Create server‑side foundations that enable agent‑driven products and AI‑enabled workflows.
• Collaborate with AI Engineers to define integration patterns between backend systems and agent frameworks.
• Stand up and manage demo and prototype infrastructure on Google Cloud Platform.
• Define backend code standards, engineering practices, and technical guardrails with the Tech Lead.
• Make pragmatic technical decisions in a fast‑moving discovery environment and support the transition of successful prototypes to scalable product delivery paths.

Required profile

• Strong experience as a Backend Engineer with production‑grade Python.
• Proven ability to design and build APIs, backend services, and data‑driven applications.
• Solid understanding of cloud‑native engineering principles and experience with GCP or similar platforms.
• Comfort operating in ambiguous, early‑stage product environments and making technical decisions without a fully defined backlog.
• Product instincts and interest in building technology that users can test, validate, and respond to.
• Familiarity with AI‑augmented development tools such as Claude, Cursor, or GitHub Copilot.

Required skills

• Python
• API design
• Backend services development
• Data‑driven application architecture
• Cloud‑native engineering
• Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
• AI‑augmented development tools (Claude, Cursor, GitHub Copilot)