Backend Software Developer - Dev Productivity

About Applied Intuition

Applied Intuition is the vehicle intelligence company that accelerates the global adoption of safe, AI-driven machines. Founded in 2017, Applied Intuition delivers the toolchain, Vehicle OS, and autonomy stacks to help customers build intelligent vehicles and shorten time to market. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers and major programs across the Department of Defense trust Applied Intuition's solutions to deliver vehicle intelligence. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining, and agriculture industries and is headquartered in Mountain View, CA, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Diego, CA, Ft. Walton Beach, FL, Ann Arbor, MI, London, Stuttgart, Munich, Stockholm, Seoul, and Tokyo. Learn more at appliedintuition.com .

We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. (Note: For EpiSci job openings, fully remote work will be considered by exception.)

About the role

As a Software Engineer for Developer Productivity , you will contribute to the design and evolution of the systems that support our autonomy software lifecycle—from code commit to hardware-in-the-loop testing. You will accelerate secure software development across Applied Intuition's full simulation and validation platform by building CI/CD pipelines, testing frameworks, and developer tooling that maintain high velocity while ensuring compliance with government security protocols, clearance requirements, and air-gapped network constraints. Your work will directly affect the pace, safety, and reliability of autonomy development at Applied.

At Applied Intuition, you will:

• Build and maintain high-leverage tools and systems that empower engineering teams to develop and deploy autonomy software with greater speed, reliability, and security.


• Design scalable CI/CD workflows that integrate with our autonomy-specific validation stack, including simulation, sensor modeling, and multi-agent testing.


• Improve the internal developer experience through robust build systems, reproducible environments, and secure artifact management.


• Support hybrid cloud and on-prem infrastructure used for large-scale simulation, ML pipelines, and real-time testing.


• Partner with simulation, ML, autonomy, and security teams to deliver tailored infrastructure for their needs—while keeping systems simple, reliable, and maintainable.


• Contribute to infrastructure and security compliance for customers operating in defense, classified, or other highly regulated domains.

We're looking for someone who has:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Cloud Computing, Cyber-security or a related engineering field


• 3+ years of experience designing and operating infrastructure for high-performance engineering teams.


• Deep expertise with CI/CD systems, build tooling, version control, and developer-facing services.


• Proficiency with Linux systems and common tools (e.g. Kubernetes, Git, Docker, Artifactory).


• Experience with secure systems development, especially in U.S. government or defense environments.


• Strong scripting and automation skills (Python or Bash preferred).


• U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain a U.S. Top Secret security clearance.


• CompTIA Security+ certification (or willingness to obtain within 6 months).

Travel Requirements:

• Must be willing to travel as required to support projects; estimated average travel is once every other month for between 2-5 days (~20%)

Security Requirements:

• Must be a U.S. Citizen


• Must be hold or be eligible for a U.S. Top Secret security clearance

For more information about U.S. security clearances: click here .

Nice to have:

• Master’s degree in Computer Science, Cloud Computing, Cyber-security or a related engineering field


• 5+ years of hands-on experience performing DevOps roles in the defense industry


• Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) ,Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD), Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS)


• Proven expertise in setting up and managing on-premises instances of AWS Services, ML Ops tooling, and automated security monitoring solutions


• Current U.S. TOP SECRET clearance

Compensation at Applied Intuition for eligible roles includes base salary, equity, and benefits. Base salary is a single component of the total compensation package, which may also include equity in the form of options and/or restricted stock units, comprehensive health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance coverage, 401k retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off. Note that benefits are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction of employment.

Applied Intuition pay ranges reflect the minimum and maximum intended target base salary for new hire salaries for the position. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position.

Please reference the job posting’s subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the locations listed is: $125,000 to $200,000 USD annually.

Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Applied Intuition is an equal opportunity employer and federal contractor or subcontractor. Consequently, the parties agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-1.4(a), 41 CFR 60-300.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and that these laws are incorporated herein by reference. These regulations prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their status as protected veterans or individuals with disabilities, and prohibit discrimination against all individuals based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. These regulations require that covered prime contractors and subcontractors take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status or disability. The parties also agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of Executive Order 13496 (29 CFR Part 471, Appendix A to Subpart A), relating to the notice of employee rights under federal labor laws.