Top Senior Software Engineer Jobs in Washington, DC

Own full-stack features from scoping through launch, build AI-powered product surfaces, improve platform reliability and performance, engage federal stakeholders, set technical direction, uphold code quality, and mentor engineers. The role requires strong React, Next.js, Node.js, TypeScript, and Postgres expertise, effective use of AI coding tools, and comfort operating independently in an ambiguous, high-impact environment.

Design, implement, and operate distributed software for Northwood’s global satellite ground-station network. Responsibilities span cloud orchestration, customer and control-plane APIs, workflow engines, real-time telemetry and TT&C, edge hardware control, high-throughput networking, monitoring, infrastructure security, CI/CD, simulations, and production-line testing. The role requires ownership of technical areas, cross-functional collaboration with hardware and communications engineers, and development of reliable, scalable systems supporting satellite communications.

Own end-to-end engineering projects, build scalable backend services and React experiences, and expand a core API handling millions of daily requests. Investigate production issues, participate in code reviews and interviews, and collaborate on product roadmaps. The role requires strong software engineering expertise, scalable application development experience, and the ability to balance speed with reliability. Fintech, data pipeline, payment rail, and DevOps experience are advantageous.

Build and deliver custom software integrations and policy enforcement points for cleared customers in classified and disconnected environments. Collaborate with customer, deployment, QA, platform, and product engineers; explain designs to security teams; package software for air-gapped installation; and convert repeated customer solutions into reusable tools, libraries, or templates. The role also involves AI-assisted development, documentation, design reviews, and peer mentoring.

Develop and maintain production numerical software in Python for electromagnetic sensing systems. Architect APIs and integrations, optimize signal-processing code through vectorization, JIT, GPU acceleration, or compiled bindings, and establish testing and CI practices. Partner with signal-processing engineers to productionize algorithms from research and MATLAB prototypes. The role requires on-site work in Washington, D.C., periodic travel up to 30%, U.S. citizenship, and eligibility for a security clearance.

Develop and support applications in an AWS environment for an FBI government customer. Responsibilities include requirements analysis, Java and JavaScript development, Angular UI work, third-party integration, code enhancement, automation, testing, quality assurance, deployment, statistical modeling, architecture reviews, estimation, and knowledge transfer across the software development lifecycle.

Develop and maintain Java, Python, JavaScript, and Oracle-based applications for Department of the Navy missions in classified and unclassified environments. Implement software enhancements, troubleshoot defects, optimize databases, support release pipelines, apply secure coding practices, and mitigate vulnerabilities. Research and develop AI capabilities using AWS services and modern frameworks. Collaborate with Agile teams, Government stakeholders, and auditors while supporting compliance and modernization initiatives.

Develop and maintain Java, Python, JavaScript, and Oracle applications supporting Department of the Navy missions. Responsibilities include full software development lifecycle delivery, secure coding, database performance optimization, vulnerability mitigation, release pipeline support, AI research and implementation, architecture modernization, troubleshooting, and audit compliance within an Agile Scrum environment.

Design, build, and maintain Quantifind's Apache Spark batch pipelines and backend platform that generate risk signals from diverse data sources. Implement scalable algorithms, data services, ETL pipelines, and microservices; deploy on Kubernetes and optimize storage/caching and distributed processing. Collaborate with Data Scientists, DevOps, Product, and Sales to deliver performant, testable systems processing terabytes daily.

Develop cross-platform native C++ abstractions for the Unity Editor across Windows, macOS, and Linux. Maintain and modernize the existing codebase, support new operating-system features and design guidelines, troubleshoot difficult platform issues using native debuggers, and collaborate with product managers and worldwide engineering teams to plan and deliver editor experiences.

Lead the architecture and redesign of Axon’s multi-cloud networking stack across AWS, Azure, and devices. Define connectivity, reliability, security, performance, compliance, and cost strategies; guide production rollout and cross-team initiatives; identify risks; advise engineering leadership; mentor senior engineers; and establish engineering standards. The role also includes setting group-level AI strategy and using AI tools to accelerate software development.

Build and operate full-stack software for legal case analysis, including interfaces, data models, document-processing workflows, retrieval and LLM-powered features. Design systems that connect claims to evidence, preserve competing interpretations, evaluate AI outputs, incorporate attorney corrections, and protect case-sensitive information. Own major features from design through launch, make architectural tradeoffs, review code, and guide technical decisions while collaborating with lawyers, founders, and engineers.

Develop and operate mission-critical, cloud-based full-stack software for satellite tracking, analytics, radar orchestration, and data delivery. Responsibilities include building distributed backend services, designing APIs and message-driven workflows, ensuring reliability and security, participating in requirements discussions, supporting production systems and on-call rotations, and contributing to DOD/IC customer initiatives. The role also involves using generative AI and owning services throughout their development lifecycle.

Designs, architects, and leads delivery of enterprise applications, APIs, platforms, and AI-enabled solutions. Builds agentic workflows, LLM and RAG applications, integrations, data pipelines, and full-stack services across Azure and AWS. Establishes secure engineering, testing, CI/CD, observability, and reliability practices while addressing AI safety and governance. Partners with attorneys, product owners, AI and data teams, and executives to translate complex workflows into scalable solutions, lead architecture, mentor engineers, and drive initiatives from prototype through production.

Develop low-level embedded software and firmware for wearable smart optics systems. Responsibilities include board bring-up, Linux drivers, BSPs, Device Tree, DDR initialization, embedded Linux with Yocto, hardware-software debugging, and Python user-space tooling. Collaborate with electrical and mechanical engineers to build reliable, field-ready defense technology from prototype hardware.

Architect and lead development of Kong Identity’s multi-tenant platform, including token management, claims engines, federation, client management, security controls, compliance, observability, and developer tooling. The role focuses on globally distributed, high-performance identity infrastructure, advanced OAuth and OpenID Connect capabilities, fraud prevention, extensibility, and enterprise integrations. The engineer will drive technical strategy, mentor teams, and support zero-trust, workload identity, and service mesh patterns.

Designs, builds, and maintains full-stack applications supporting federal defense planning and budgeting systems. Leads software architecture, testing, code reviews, mentoring, API integrations, CI/CD, security remediation, and defect resolution. Integrates LLM, RAG, and agentic AI capabilities into production systems while working across classified and unclassified environments. Requires extensive federal-sector software development experience, active Secret or Top Secret clearance, Security+ certification, and expertise with modern cloud, containerization, and software engineering technologies.

Build and maintain backend services and metadata pipelines supporting data discovery, governance, and AI/ML workflows. Responsibilities include integrating relational databases, developing Java, Node.js, and Python services, optimizing distributed pipelines, implementing Terraform infrastructure, supporting GitLab CI/CD, and writing comprehensive tests. The role also involves troubleshooting scalability and reliability issues, designing asynchronous workflows, and collaborating on modern data lake, search, metadata, and LLM-enabled technologies.

Develops and delivers resilient full-stack applications and services for Vantage’s reinsurance business. Responsibilities include application design, coding, debugging, testing, architecture discussions, risk management, roadmap estimation, stakeholder consultation, and coordination across project teams. The role promotes software engineering standards, DevSecOps, CI/CD, agile practices, innovation, and mentoring while building solutions with JavaScript, React, Node.js, Python, cloud, serverless, and modern infrastructure technologies.

Leads the design, implementation, and evolution of enterprise observability and logging platforms. Builds automation, CI/CD integrations, infrastructure-as-code solutions, data routing and transformation pipelines, and AI-native tools for issue detection and resolution. Architects scalable distributed systems, optimizes performance and costs, mentors engineers, conducts code reviews, and collaborates with SRE, security, networking, platform engineering, and data science teams. Requires deep expertise in OpenTelemetry, Splunk, logging, observability maturity, automation, and AI solution development.

Leads end-to-end software product engineering across complex programs, defining technical vision, architecture, roadmaps, and delivery practices. Develops full-stack Java/Python and Angular/React applications using SQL/NoSQL, AWS, microservices, APIs, streaming, CI/CD, and DevSecOps. Establishes engineering standards, performance and security practices, mentors engineers, oversees codebases, integrates AI capabilities, and communicates progress, risks, and tradeoffs to executives and cross-functional stakeholders.

Build and maintain full-stack web applications, interactive dashboards, backend integration services, resilient APIs, and AI-enabled features. Collaborate with engineering, data, product, and DevOps teams to integrate databases, automate deployments, troubleshoot cloud and hybrid environments, and scale enterprise application capabilities. Apply modern frontend, backend, DevOps, data visualization, and continuous delivery practices.

Own the navigation and positioning stack for head-worn and body-worn systems. Develop inertial, GNSS, calibration, sensor-fusion, and attitude-estimation solutions; integrate sensors across hardware and embedded software; and build testing, validation, and data-replay infrastructure. Collaborate with perception, firmware, mechanical, and manufacturing teams to deliver robust production navigation in challenging environments. Validate performance through laboratory and field testing against ground truth.

Lead the design, development, deployment, and operation of complex production software for Yext’s Competitive Intelligence products. Provide technical leadership, mentor engineers, guide architecture and technical planning, lead incident response, collaborate across teams, participate in recruiting, and promote high engineering standards. Build customer-facing experiences involving data, AI, visualizations, user interfaces, and agentic workflows while responsibly using and evaluating AI-assisted development tools.

Develops, integrates, tests, deploys, maintains, and troubleshoots enterprise software across Microsoft platforms. Translates stakeholder requirements into secure web, desktop, cloud, API, and Microsoft 365 solutions. Builds AI-enabled and generative AI applications using LLMs, supports enterprise integrations, evaluates development standards and technologies, and provides technical leadership across projects. The role also collaborates with vendors, documents systems, supports lifecycle roadmaps, and advises legal and administrative stakeholders.