Manifold is looking for a Software Engineer to build the core architecture and foundational systems powering our software.
You will own the application infrastructure that enables our product to operate as secure, reliable, production-grade software. This includes authentication, authorization, data storage, APIs, application services, and the systems that allow us to rapidly build and deploy new capabilities.
This is an early, high-ownership role. You will work closely with our founding engineering team to turn a rapidly evolving prototype into a scalable production application used by government decision-makers. You will independently design, build, and ship major systems while helping shape the technical architecture of the product.
What You Will DoBuild the foundation of our core application: Design and implement authentication, role-based access control, data storage, permissioning, API integrations, and the shared services that power our software.
Design scalable application architecture: Make technical decisions about service boundaries, data models, APIs, and system design to support an evolving product and multiple customer deployments.
Own backend systems end-to-end: Take foundational capabilities from loosely defined requirements through technical design, implementation, testing, and production deployment.
Establish application engineering standards: Build automated tests, define clear API contracts, and develop maintainable systems that enable the team to ship quickly without sacrificing correctness.
Enable rapid product development: Build reusable components, interfaces, and services that allow our engineers to rapidly develop new applications and customer-specific workflows without compromising the core platform.
Collaborate across engineering: Work closely with our Founding Engineer on domain-specific capabilities, Forward Deployed Engineers on customer requirements, and Platform Engineers on production deployment and infrastructure.
Required Qualifications- Strong software engineering fundamentals, with deep experience building backend services, APIs, and database-backed applications.
- Experience designing, implementing, testing, and deploying production software used by real customers.
- Ability to independently own complex engineering projects from technical design through production deployment.
- Strong systems design skills and the ability to evaluate architectural tradeoffs across scalability, performance, security, and maintainability.
- Demonstrated initiative, sound technical judgment, and the ability to execute in ambiguous, fast-moving environments.
- U.S.-based U.S. citizen
Preferred Qualifications- Security Clearance
- Experience building a production, user-facing application from the ground up, ideally as an early engineer at a startup.
- Experience designing and implementing foundational application systems, including authentication, authorization, data persistence, and API integrations.
- Experience making significant architectural decisions and owning major backend systems end-to-end.
- Experience designing extensible application architectures that support multiple products, workflows, or customers.
- Experience working on small, high-ownership engineering teams with rapidly evolving product requirements.
Nice to Have- Experience with Python, FastAPI, PostgreSQL, Neo4j, or Next.js.
- Experience with multi-tenant applications, fine-grained access controls, or complex data permissioning.
- Experience with frontend development using React, TypeScript, or similar technologies.
- Experience building software for government, defense, or other security-sensitive environments.
Benefits- 401(k) with matching
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents
- Unlimited PTO
- Health & Wellness stipend
- Lunch stipend 3 times per week and dinner stipend after 8 p.m.
- Company-wide break the last two weeks of the year
- Supportive leave of absence including time off for military service, medical events, and parental leave
