Senior Backend Engineer

About Paladin Drones

Paladin is revolutionizing public safety with autonomous drone technology. Our mission? To be on the frontline of emergencies within 90 seconds. When someone dials 911, our drones take flight, providing first responders with a real-time overhead view of the situation, amplifying their situational awareness and hastening response times. Leveraging LTE for unlimited range and control, our drones currently answer the call of duty over 1000 times weekly across multiple cities and states.

Our vision is ambitious: within the next decade, our technology will be an essential tool for first responders in every city worldwide. As a tight-knit, passionate, and forward-thinking team, we are committed to pushing the boundaries of UAV tech and making a monumental difference in a rapidly advancing domain.

Position Overview

As a Backend Engineer at Paladin Drones, you will design and build the APIs, services, and infrastructure that power our drone operations, real-time telemetry systems, and mission-critical applications. You’ll work closely with front-end, data, and DevOps teams to ensure secure, scalable, and reliable backend services that enable first responders to receive timely, accurate drone intelligence in the field.

Responsibilities

• API Development: Design, build, and maintain RESTful and GraphQL APIs for mission-critical applications.
  
  
• Service Architecture: Develop scalable, reliable microservices to handle drone telemetry, video feeds, and geospatial data.
  
  
• Database Management: Design schemas, optimize queries, and ensure data consistency across PostgreSQL and other database systems.
  
  
• Real-Time Systems: Implement and optimize real-time data pipelines (e.g., WebSockets, Kafka, or MQTT) for streaming telemetry and video.
  
  
• Integration: Work with external APIs, third-party services, and internal data pipelines to unify drone data for operators and responders.
  
  
• Testing & Monitoring: Write unit, integration, and load tests; set up monitoring and alerting with tools like Prometheus, Grafana, or CloudWatch.
  
  
• Collaboration: Partner with front-end, data engineering, and DevOps teams to deliver complete, end-to-end solutions.
  
  
• Security & Compliance: Apply secure coding practices and ensure backend systems comply with SOC2, GDPR, and NIST standards.
  
  
• Documentation: Create clear technical documentation for APIs, services, and system architecture.
  
  

Qualifications

Required:

• 4+ years of experience building production backend systems.
  
  
• Strong proficiency in at least one backend language: Python, Node.js, Go, or Java.
  
  
• Experience with API design (REST/GraphQL) and microservices architecture.
  
  
• Solid understanding of relational databases (PostgreSQL preferred), including schema design and performance tuning.
  
  
• Experience with containerization and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes).
  
  
• Familiarity with cloud services (AWS preferred, GCP/Azure acceptable).
  
  
• Strong understanding of security best practices for APIs and data systems.
  
  
• Version control and CI/CD experience (GitHub).
  
  

Preferred:

• Experience with real-time streaming platforms (Kafka, Kinesis, or MQTT).
  
  
• Familiarity with geospatial data and PostGIS.
  
  
• Exposure to video streaming and processing (WebRTC, HLS, RTSP).
  
  
• Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform, Pulumi) experience.
  
  
• Background in IoT systems or drone technology.
  
  

What We Offer

• Competitive salary and equity packages.
  
  
• Health and wellness benefits.
  
  
• Unlimited PTO and paid holidays.
  
  
• Opportunity to grow with a mission-driven, innovative company.
  
  
• A collaborative and fast-paced work environment.
  
  

Join Paladin Drones and contribute to the future of autonomous emergency response technology. Apply today to be part of an innovative team making a real-world impact!

Paladin Drones is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.