Software/AI developer

Rackner is seeking a Software/AI Developer. R&D to design, build, test, and demonstrate software and AI-enabled capabilities supporting government and defense missions. This is a hands-on engineering role for someone who enjoys turning ideas and mission needs into working software. You will work alongside R&D engineers, technical leaders, and mission stakeholders to rapidly develop prototypes, backend services, APIs, data workflows, and AI-enabled applications that can be tested with real users and matured into operational capabilities.

Responsibilities

Design, develop, test, and maintain software for mission-focused R&D projects; Build backend services, APIs, integrations, and data-processing workflows; Develop AI-enabled applications using LLMs, machine learning models, and other modern AI technologies; Build and evaluate AI agents, retrieval workflows, automation tools, and other AI-assisted capabilities; Integrate AI models and services into usable software applications rather than treating AI as a standalone experiment; Develop prototypes and proofs of concept that can be demonstrated to government customers and mission users; Work with structured and unstructured data, including data ingestion, transformation, validation, and retrieval; Write clean, maintainable, testable code and participate in code reviews and technical design discussions; Debug software, integration, data, and model-related issues across development and testing environments; Collaborate with DevSecOps engineers to containerize, deploy, monitor, and improve applications in cloud and secure environments; Evaluate new AI models, frameworks, libraries, and development approaches for potential use in R&D projects; Participate in technical demos, field events, experiments, and customer feedback sessions; Turn feedback from technical teams and mission users into software improvements and new capabilities; Document technical decisions, APIs, system behavior, and development approaches so solutions can be maintained and extended

Requirements

U.S. citizenship due to federal contract requirements; Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance; Strong hands-on software development experience, particularly with Python; Experience developing backend applications, services, APIs, or data-driven software; Experience building, integrating, or supporting AI/ML or generative AI applications; Understanding of software engineering fundamentals, including application design, testing, debugging, version control, and code review; Experience working with APIs, JSON, databases, and structured or semi-structured data; Ability to take a technical problem from concept through implementation and demonstration; Experience working in fast-moving environments where requirements may not be fully defined at the beginning; Ability to independently investigate technical problems, evaluate options, and build practical solutions; Strong communication and collaboration skills with engineers, technical leaders, and non-engineering stakeholders; Willingness to travel approximately 15% for R&D events, demos, testing, and collaboration sessions

Nice to have

Active Secret clearance or higher; Experience supporting DoD, Air Force, Space Force, mission command, battle management, C2, ISR, mission planning, autonomy, or other national security programs; Experience developing applications using LLMs, generative AI, agentic AI, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), embeddings, vector databases, or model APIs; Experience evaluating model outputs, accuracy, reliability, latency, and other AI performance considerations; Experience with AI/ML frameworks or libraries such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, Hugging Face, LangChain, LlamaIndex, or similar technologies; Experience with REST APIs, microservices, event-driven systems, or backend frameworks; Experience with SQL, NoSQL databases, data pipelines, or data-processing frameworks; Familiarity with AWS, Azure, or other cloud platforms; Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD, Git, Terraform, Helm, or similar development and deployment technologies; Familiarity with MLOps, model deployment, observability, evaluation, or production AI workflows; Experience developing software for disconnected, classified, edge, or other constrained environments; Experience building prototypes, proofs of concept, technical demos, or experimental software; Experience working in R&D, defense technology, applied AI, or startup-like engineering environments

Benefits

Company-supported certifications aligned to current and future program work, including cloud, Kubernetes, DevSecOps, security, AI/ML, project management, and related technical areas; Clear advancement tracks and future leadership opportunities; 401(k) with 100% match up to 6%; Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life, and disability coverage; Generous PTO and paid holidays; Home-office equipment plan and remote work support; Fitness and wellness reimbursement; Weekly pay schedule and modern perks, including team events