Full Stack Engineer – AI / Defense Technology
Global Placement Firm is conducting a confidential search for Full Stack Engineers to join a rapidly growing AI and defense technology company building mission-critical software for government and national security applications.
This is a 70/30 backend-leaning full-stack role for an engineer who enjoys building from scratch, shipping production-grade applications, and working directly with customers and government operators.
The ideal candidate has 2–8 years of full-stack engineering experience, hands-on experience building AI agents and integrating LLMs, and a strong interest in government, defense, or national security technology.
Position Overview
As a Full Stack Engineer, you will build and deploy software that helps government operators acquire and evaluate technology more efficiently.
You'll work across Python, React, Next.js, AI agents, LLM integrations, data workflows, and modern web applications, owning projects from initial development through production deployment.
This is a highly collaborative role where engineers work closely with technical leadership, product leadership, and end users. You may also travel to military installations and customer sites to present solutions, gather feedback, and deploy software directly with operators.
Key Responsibilities
- Build and ship production-grade full-stack applications used by government and defense operators.
- Develop data workflows and tools that improve government technology acquisition and procurement processes.
- Build and enhance an AI-powered platform used by major defense contractors and government-facing organizations.
- Develop AI agents and LLM-powered features for opportunity identification, competitive intelligence, research, and pipeline management.
- Design and implement intuitive, polished user interfaces using React and Next.js.
- Develop scalable backend systems and services primarily using Python.
- Work with data pipelines, APIs, web scraping, and other technologies used to collect and process large amounts of information.
- Own projects end-to-end, from architecture and implementation through deployment and iteration.
- Work directly with the CTO and CPO to shape product direction and technical strategy.
- Present software solutions to government operators and customer stakeholders.
- Travel to military bases and customer sites to deploy solutions, gather feedback, and work directly with end users.
- Rapidly iterate on products based on real-world customer feedback.
- Help solve complex technology and infrastructure challenges affecting national security and government operations.
Required Qualifications
- 2–8 years of professional full-stack software engineering experience.
- Strong full-stack development experience with a backend-leaning profile, approximately 70/30 backend-to-frontend.
- Demonstrated experience shipping full-stack web applications used by real customers or users.
- Strong proficiency with:
- Python
- React
- Next.js
- Hands-on experience building AI agents and integrating LLM APIs.
- Experience building intuitive, polished, user-friendly interfaces.
- Experience working with data pipelines, web scraping, APIs, or large-scale data workflows.
- Experience at a high-growth startup, preferably Seed through Series B, or at a top-tier technology company.
- Strong ability to work independently and take ownership of projects from concept through production.
- Excellent communication skills and comfort working directly with customers and end users.
- Genuine interest in AI, government, defense, or national security technology.
Preferred Qualifications
- Active Secret or Top Secret security clearance.
- Previous experience working on government, defense, military, or national security projects.
- Experience working directly with government operators or defense contractors.
- Experience building software for highly regulated, mission-critical, or security-sensitive environments.
- Experience with large-scale data acquisition, web scraping, or intelligence workflows.
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from a highly regarded program or equivalent practical engineering experience.
Ideal Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate is a high-energy, hands-on builder who wants to work on technically challenging problems with real-world national security implications.
You should be someone who enjoys moving quickly, working with incomplete information, and taking ownership rather than waiting for detailed requirements.
We're Looking For Someone Who:
- Is genuinely excited about the intersection of AI, software, government, and national security.
- Has a strong builder mentality and enjoys creating new products from the ground up.
- Can move comfortably between backend systems, frontend applications, infrastructure, and AI integrations.
- Has excellent communication skills and can explain technical concepts to non-technical users.
- Is comfortable presenting software directly to government operators and customers.
- Responds quickly to feedback and can adapt when requirements change.
- Is highly resourceful, ambitious, and comfortable in a fast-moving startup.
- Wants to see their software used directly in important, real-world missions.
- Is willing to travel and work directly with customers in operational environments.
Customer-Facing & Travel Requirements
This is not a purely internal engineering position.
Engineers will periodically work directly with government operators and customer organizations to understand their workflows, deploy technology, gather feedback, and improve the product.
Candidates should be prepared to travel to military bases and customer sites approximately a few days per month, with some periods potentially requiring 1–2 weeks of travel per month at maximum.
Work Arrangement
Primary Locations: San Francisco, CA or Washington, DC
Work Schedule: In-person, 5 days per week
Travel: Periodic travel to military bases and customer sites is required.
Candidates must be based in or willing to relocate to San Francisco or Washington, DC.
Compensation & Equity
Base Salary: $180,000 – $240,000 annually
Equity: $50,000 – $500,000 over four years
Employment Type: Full-Time
Open Positions: 3–5
Visa & Work Authorization
Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.
Candidates must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.
Candidates holding an active Secret or Top Secret clearance are strongly preferred.
Why Join
This is an opportunity to join an early-stage AI company working on some of the most challenging technology problems in government, defense, and national security.
You'll have the opportunity to:
- Build AI-powered products with direct mission impact.
- Work alongside experienced technology, defense, and startup operators.
- Build software directly with government and military users.
- Work on greenfield systems rather than maintaining legacy platforms.
- Build across the full stack, including Python, React, Next.js, AI agents, and LLM integrations.
- Work directly with senior technical and product leadership.
- Take significant ownership over product development and technical decisions.
- See your work deployed and used in real operational environments.
- Help shape the technology and culture of a rapidly growing company.
Candidate Considerations
Candidates who are primarily interested in traditional software development without an interest in government or national security may not be the right fit.
This role requires a willingness to:
- Work in-person five days per week.
- Travel to military bases and customer sites.
- Present solutions directly to customers and government operators.
- Work in a highly dynamic startup environment.
- Operate with significant autonomy and ownership.
- Engage with complex national security and government technology challenges.
Candidates whose background is exclusively within traditional, large-scale defense organizations may also be less aligned with the company's startup-oriented engineering culture.
Confidential Search
This position is being presented by Global Placement Firm on behalf of a confidential client. Additional company and client information will be provided to qualified candidates during the recruitment process.