Staff Software Engineer - Backend

About Cyngn 

Based in Menlo Park, CA, Cyngn is a publicly traded autonomous vehicle company. Whether at a warehouse floor, mine, or construction site, our self-driving technology can be deployed in various commercial domains across various vehicle form factors. To build this emergent technology, we seek innovative, motivated, and experienced leaders to join our team and move this field forward. If you like to build, tinker, and create with a team of trusted and passionate colleagues, then Cyngn is the place for you. Key reasons to join Cyngn: 

We are Small and Big. 

With under 100 employees, Cyngn is still a company that operates with the energy of a startup. On the other hand, we are publicly traded. Combined, our employees not only work in close-knit teams with close mentorship from company leaders, but they also get access to the liquidity of our publicly traded equity. This gives our small team the opportunity to make a big impact in industries that other people aren’t touching—without taking on the risks associated with untested organizations. 

We Build Today and Deploy Tomorrow. 

Our employees aren’t just researchers but are creating reality. In other words, the autonomous vehicles we’re building are designed to go to real clients right away. We are driven by our passion for innovation, our ability to see the entire product, and the real impact of our work in the real world. At Cyngn, the distance between the theoretical and the actual is razor-thin. 

We aren’t robots. We just build them. 

Read our Glassdoor reviews, and you’ll find that one of the best things about working here is the people. We are an inclusive, diverse team of top talent with exceptional synergy. We thrive on open collaboration and a trusting and creative work environment that is fueled by our passion for the industry. At Cyngn, everyone’s voice is valued, and each of our unique perspectives is celebrated. It’s the people that allow our company to continue to grow bigger and better every day.

About this Role:

As the Staff Software Engineer for our SaaS platform team, you will be crucial in developing Cyngn's cutting-edge fleet management system for autonomous industrial vehicles. You'll collaborate with product and engineering teams to design, implement, deploy, and maintain a robust cloud-based solution that enables real-time control and monitoring of autonomous vehicles in the field. Your expertise will be instrumental in creating a scalable, high-performance system that empowers our customers to optimize their automated workflows and maximize operational efficiency.

What you will do in this role

• Architect and lead the development of a sophisticated, cloud-native fleet management system capable of real-time control and monitoring of numerous autonomous vehicles
• Design and implement scalable, distributed systems that can handle high-volume, real-time data processing and decision-making
• Develop robust APIs and microservices to support integration with various autonomous vehicle platforms and customer systems
• Create efficient algorithms for route optimization, task scheduling, and resource allocation across vehicle fleets
• Implement advanced data analytics and machine learning capabilities to provide predictive maintenance, performance optimization, and business intelligence features
• Ensure system reliability, security, and compliance with industry standards and regulations
• Lead a team of skilled engineers, fostering a culture of innovation, code quality, and continuous improvement
• Collaborate with product managers, UX designers, and customers to translate business requirements into technical solutions
• Mentor junior developers and contribute to the technical growth of the engineering team
• Participate in the entire software development lifecycle, from concept and design to testing, deployment, and maintenance
• Engage with customers to understand their needs and translate them into technical requirements

Who you are

• 10+ years of software development experience, with a strong focus on backend systems and distributed architectures
• Extensive experience in building and scaling cloud-native SaaS platforms, preferably in the IoT or robotics domains
• Expert-level proficiency in at least one of Python, Go, Java, or C++, with working knowledge of others
• Deep understanding of cloud technologies and services (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
• Proven experience with event-driven architectures and message queuing systems (e.g., Kafka, RabbitMQ, Apache Pulsar)
• Strong background in database design and optimization, including both SQL and NoSQL solutions
• Proficiency in developing scalable WebSocket-based real-time communication systems
• Expertise in developing real-time data processing pipelines and analytics systems
• Proficiency with containerization and orchestration technologies (Docker, Kubernetes)
• Experience with infrastructure-as-code and CI/CD practices (e.g., Terraform, GitOps)
• Track record of leading development teams and mentoring junior developers
• Excellent problem-solving skills and ability to optimize complex systems
• Strong communication skills and ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• Strong collaboration skills with a low ego

Nice to haves

• Experience with IoT platforms, robotics frameworks (e.g., ROS), or autonomous vehicle technologies
• Solid understanding of network protocols and communication standards relevant to IoT and autonomous systems
• Knowledge of AMQP, MQTT, DDS, or other IoT-specific communication protocols
• Experience with time-series databases (e.g., InfluxDB, TimescaleDB) for handling large volumes of sensor data
• Familiarity with edge computing and fog architectures
• Experience with real-time operating systems and embedded software development
• Expertise in building and maintaining scalable API platforms
• Experience with geospatial data processing and mapping technologies
• Knowledge of fleet management software and vehicle telematics systems
• Experience with simulation environments for autonomous systems testing

Benefits & Perks

• Health benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision, HSA and FSA (Health & Dependent Daycare), Employee Assistance Program, 1:1 Health Concierge)
• Life, Short-term, and long-term disability insurance (Cyngn funds 100% of premiums)
• Company 401(k)
• Commuter Benefits
• Flexible vacation policy
• Remote or hybrid work opportunities
• Stock options for all full-time employees
• Sabbatical leave opportunity after five years with the company
• Paid Parental Leave
• Daily lunches for in-office employees and fully stocked kitchen with snacks and beverages
• Monthly meal and tech allowances for remote employees