Senior Software Engineer (Backend)

Company Overview

Imagine a piloted air taxi that takes off vertically, then quietly carries you and your fellow passengers over the congested city streets below, enabling you to spend more time with the people and places that matter most. At Joby, we've been working to make that dream a reality since 2009 and we're now in the final stages of certifying our aircraft with the FAA. With plans to launch our aircraft in the US and Dubai, we're now scaling manufacturing and preparing for the launch of our commercial service.

Overview

We're looking for a Senior Software Engineer with deep backend systems expertise to help drive the next generation of infrastructure that powers Joby's manufacturing and operations. In this role, you'll design and build scalable, reliable Python services that connect business logic, production data, and hardware systems across a globally distributed organization. You'll partner with product, operations, manufacturing, and hardware teams to identify high-impact technical opportunities, architect solutions that handle real manufacturing complexity, and establish the patterns that let Factory Systems ship production-grade capabilities at scale. This is a rare opportunity to work at the intersection of software, aviation, and global collaboration—where your code quite literally helps get things off the ground.

Responsibilities

Design and build scalable backend services and APIs that power manufacturing workflows, financial systems, and operational tools

Architect event-driven systems, integrations, and data pipelines that reliably connect internal services, manufacturing equipment, and operational intelligence

Own end-to-end delivery of backend systems: requirements discovery, design, implementation, deployment, monitoring, and iteration

Raise the bar for the whole team by leading technical design discussions, mentoring engineers, and establishing the patterns and tooling that let others build reliable services

Collaborate across time zones and disciplines—hardware, operations, manufacturing, quality—to deliver outcomes that improve efficiency and clarity.

Contribute to a modern tech stack in a fast-moving, high-ownership environment with increasing architectural influence.

Required

B.S. or M.S. in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or equivalent practical experience

5+ years of software engineering experience building and operating production systems

Advanced, hands-on experience with Python and building scalable applications

Strong understanding of Docker and containerized development workflows

Strong knowledge of RESTful APIs and designing clean, maintainable web services and system architectures

Deep experience with event-driven architecture—ideally using tools like Kafka to build reliable, asynchronous workflows

Experience moving prototypes into reliable production systems, with strong debugging, testing, and observability practices

Clear communication and a track record of collaborating across disciplines to deliver outcomes

Desired

Working proficiency with GitHub-based CI/CD workflows and deployment automation

Proficient in databases such as PostgreSQL and/or MongoDB with experience optimizing queries and managing data at scale

Experience with GraphQL or other modern API patterns in addition to REST

Familiarity with cloud storage platforms and distributed file systems

Comfortable working independently in globally distributed teams

Background in production or manufacturing settings, or experience building systems that integrate with hardware or real-time data

Experience with AI-assisted development workflows and LLM-based tooling

Additional Information

Compensation at Joby is a combination of base pay and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). The target base pay for this position is $141,000 - $217,700/yr.

The compensation package will be determined by job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Joby also offers a comprehensive benefits package, including paid time off, healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan with a company match, an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, and more.