Senior Software Engineer (Active TS/SCI Clearance)

“In 36 months, agentic AI systems will be an operating reality across major institutions. We intend to be central to it.” — Dr. Jim Rebesco, Cofounder and CEO, Striveworks 

The government’s demand for AI is growing far faster than the systems required to support it. Fewer than 15% of federal AI programs have reached sustained production, despite billions of dollars invested. The models perform in testing, but they degrade in the real world. And when performance drops, trust goes with it.

Striveworks was built to solve that problem.

What you’ll build

Since 2018, we have delivered the most trusted AI systems operating in real-world use cases—providing a layer of assurance underneath hundreds of deployed models that monitors performance, manages drift, and sustains systems long after they leave the lab.

As a Senior Software Engineer, you will be a core contributor to the direction of the company. We’re looking for exemplary engineers with a product mindset who can write quality code in Go and Python. We’re looking for people who are excited about our central development themes:

• Everything as Code 
• Cloud-neutral development 
• User-centric design
• Hexagonal, event-driven, microservices architecture 
• Optimizing, deploying, and refining AI models and algorithms 

What it’s like here

We lead with trust, treat each other with respect, and use candor consistently, kindly, and constructively. We care deeply about our work, and we find genuine satisfaction in doing it well. Above all, we take ownership—because we feel the weight of collective results personally. We are looking for people who share these values and are eager to put them into practice.

What we’re looking for

• A bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field, or similar experience
• 6–8 years of hands-on development experience
• Excellence in Go, C++ (17 or higher), Java (11 or higher), C# (9 or higher), or Rust
• Proficiency in Python
• Experience with DevOps technologies: CI/CD tools, Git, Docker, Kubernetes
• Proven experience with cloud architecture: commercial cloud, OpenStack
• Experience in the design and development of performant, scalable services
• Familiarity with database design and architecture: relational and non-relational
• Ability to work cross-functionally and participate in or lead design discussions
• Ability to independently lead the software development life cycle, from collaborating with product teams on requirements to executing technical design, implementation, and deployment
• Experience in knowledge sharing, mentoring, and coaching (i.e., onboarding, code reviews, leading junior engineers)
• Strong understanding of software development principles, such as object-oriented programming, design patterns, documentation, and agile methodologies
• Active TS/SCI security clearance and US citizenship, as well as eligibility and willingness to undergo a Counterintelligence (CI) Scope Polygraph if required 

The following isn’t required, but we’d love to see it:

• Understanding of synchronous/asynchronous programming and concurrency
• Comfort with integrating deep learning libraries (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow)
• Experience designing RESTful, gRPC, and/or GraphQL APIs
• Understanding of networked and distributed computing
• Knowledge of messaging systems (e.g., NATS, Kafka, RabbitMQ)
• Experience with workflow automation

You will be hybrid and on site at customer locations in the Northern Virginia area, with up to 10% travel.

Compensation

The anticipated base pay range for this position is $185,000 to $230,000/year. Striveworks’ total compensation package includes a competitive base salary, equity grants, and cash bonuses. 

Benefits include:

• Medical/dental/vision insurance
• Voluntary life, long-term disability, accident, and hospital indemnity insurance
• HSA and FSA (including dependent care FSA) plans
• 401(k) plan
• Unlimited PTO
• Paid parental leave

Ready to build systems that work for a mission that matters? Let’s talk.

Striveworks is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, belief, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity or expression), national origin, social or ethnic origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. Striveworks will not tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind.

If you require assistance or a reasonable accommodation in the application process, please contact People Operations at hr@striveworks.us.

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify their identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete an employment eligibility verification form upon hire.

Striveworks is a participating employer in the E-Verify program.