Forward Deployed Engineer - P2P Networking
webAI is an Austin-based sovereign AI company developing local-first, specialized AI systems that organizations can build, deploy, and operate on infrastructure they own.
Projects
About webAI
webAI provides collaborative intelligence software centered on the webAI App, specialized Personas, and its Intelligence Delivery Network. Its platform is designed to keep intelligence close to organizational data and hardware, support private and specialized models, and enable teams to build, share, and improve AI without relying exclusively on centralized cloud systems.
Skills
Candidate Availability
Required and preferred rules are kept separate and reflect the wording in the original posting.
About the Role
You will design, build, and optimize secure distributed synchronization and networking systems for AI operations across edge devices, cloud environments, and isolated government systems. You will develop in Rust, improve performance and reliability under constrained connectivity, apply security-first practices, and support deployments in restricted or air-gapped environments.
Requirements
- 5–10+ years of experience with backend systems languages such as C++, C, Go, or Rust
- Experience with peer-to-peer or decentralized networking frameworks
- Active US Security Clearance
Responsibilities
- Design and implement synchronization and networking systems for reliable AI operations across heterogeneous environments
- Architect data synchronization frameworks using content-addressable storage, Merkle trees, and CRDTs
- Lead performance tuning, debugging, and optimization of distributed software under constrained and intermittent connectivity conditions
- Apply security-first design through threat modeling, secure key management, and cryptographic protocols
- Collaborate to deploy and integrate AI components in restricted or air-gapped systems
- Contribute to architectural design discussions and documentation
- Maintain testing, observability, and validation practices for reliability and compliance
- Work with distributed hash tables, content identifiers, gossip protocols, DAGs, overlay networks, and NAT traversal
- Travel to webAI offices, government field sites, and test sites as required
- Develop systems in Rust
Benefits
- Comprehensive health, dental, and vision benefits package
- 401(k) match for U.S.-based employees
- $200/month Health & Wellness stipend
- $500/year Function Health subscription for U.S.-based employees
- Free parking for in-office employees
- Flexible Time Off
- Parental leave for eligible employees
- Supplemental life insurance