Senior Backend Engineer (NYC, Founding Engineer)

LOCATION REQUIREMENT: New York City, hybrid (2-3 days a week in office)

About Ethos

Ethos is on a mission to transform how banks govern AI and predictive models.

We're an early-stage startup in New York City, backed by leading investors including Better Tomorrow Ventures and Capital One Ventures.

AI and machine learning are already used today for many of the most critical decisions in society. In financial services, this technology comes with deep questions around testing and governance to ensure these models are trustworthy.

We started Ethos because we saw firsthand the critical need for a modern platform for Model Risk Management in financial services. Rapidly-changing technology and regulations pose huge challenges for the industry, as well as enormous opportunities for positive change. At Ethos, you will be a fundamental part of this change.

The opportunity

We’re looking for a Senior Backend Engineer to join as one of our first hires and help shape the future of our company. You’ll be on the ground floor of building a fast-growing startup. We have an early product, amazing design partners, and an exciting road ahead.

We value collaboration, learning, and the challenging journey of building something new together. We prioritize quality and meaningful change.

You’ll be tackling the financial industry's toughest problems with craftsmanship and innovation. You’ll be developing a groundbreaking product and facing new challenges head-on every day.

You will become a foundational part of the Ethos journey, directly influencing every aspect of product, engineering, and culture as we grow.

About you

• You want to be one of the first hires at an early-stage startup. You’re driven to make a significant impact on hard problems. You might even dream of starting your own company one day.
• You communicate with empathy, respect, and clarity, fostering trust and strong relationships with team members and partners.
• You are a self-motivated completionist. Given a goal, you move fast, manage tradeoffs well, and communicate when plans change.
• You’re a systems-thinker. You see the big picture and appreciate the complexity and interconnectedness within a system. You can also dig deep into any individual component, and can communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively.
• Bonus: you’ve worked in financial services and/or risk management. Or, you are keen to learn deeply about a new field and its intricacies.

Tech stack

You’ll be working primarily with Python, FastAPI, and PostgreSQL on the backend, and React, Remix, and TypeScript on the frontend. You may also work with Docker and Kubernetes.

We strive to keep our codebases well-designed, tested, and enjoyable to work on.

Requirements

• 5+ years full-stack development experience.
• Significant backend experience, including designing and building well-tested RESTful JSON APIs, especially with backend MVC frameworks (FastAPI, Rails, etc.)
• Significant experience with relational SQL databases and data modeling.
• Strong experience with data structures, systems integration, and background job processing
• Experience with performance optimization and monitoring
• Bonus points for DevOps and infrastructure experience

What we offer

• Competitive salary and equity, and flexible time-off.
• Employee-friendly equity terms (restricted stock awards instead of options, extended exercise period)
• Top-quality health, dental, and vision insurance.
• The best hardware to do your job, including a MacBook Pro, and a dedicated budget for home office accessories.
• Grow with us! Our success together is your success, and we’re committed to advancing together.

Let’s talk!

Ready to play a pivotal role in advancing AI trust? We’re excited to hear from you.