Principal Software Engineer - VC Backed Startups

Join SignalFire’s Talent Network for Principal Software Engineer Roles at VC-Backed Startups

At SignalFire, we partner with top early-stage startups that are shaping the future of technology. Our portfolio spans 200+ innovative companies across AI, cybersecurity, healthtech, fintech, developer tools, and enterprise SaaS.

We’re looking to connect with exceptional Principal Front-End, Back-End, and Full-Stack Engineers who are excited about driving technical strategy, shaping architecture, and building scalable full-stack applications at high-growth startups. By joining SignalFire’s Talent Network, your profile will be shared with our portfolio companies, giving you visibility into exclusive early-stage opportunities that may not be publicly listed.

💡 This is not an application for a specific job. Instead, this is a way to get on the radar of VC-backed startups that are actively hiring AI/ML talent. If you have any questions, please direct inquiries to talentnetwork@signalfire.com.

Who Should Join?

We’re looking for engineers who are:

✔ Passionate about architecting scalable, high-performance full-stack applications

✔ Excited to lead technical decision-making and mentor engineering teams

✔ Experienced in designing end-to-end systems, from modern front-end UIs to robust back-end services

Typical Roles & Responsibilities

• Define and drive technical architecture, best practices, and full-stack development strategy
• Design, build, and maintain scalable, high-performance applications across the front-end and back-end
• Develop APIs, microservices, and cloud-native solutions to support large-scale applications
• Optimize performance, security, and reliability across the application stack
• Work closely with founders, product managers, and engineering teams to align business and technology goals
• Establish and lead code review, testing, and deployment best practices
• Mentor and guide senior engineers, fostering a strong engineering culture

Common Qualifications

While each startup has its own hiring criteria, many principal full-stack engineering roles in our network look for:

• 8+ years of experience in full-stack development, with a strong record of technical leadership
• Expertise in front-end frameworks (React, Angular, Vue.js, Svelte) and back-end frameworks (Node.js, Django, Flask, Ruby on Rails, FastAPI)
• Strong experience with databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, DynamoDB, Redis)
• Proficiency in cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) and containerization tools (Docker, Kubernetes)
• Experience with distributed systems, high-availability architectures, and event-driven designs
• Proficiency in JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Ruby, Go, or Java
• Strong background in CI/CD, DevOps, and infrastructure-as-code tools
• Experience in mentoring engineers and leading large-scale technical projects

💡 Technologies You Might Work With:

• Languages & Frameworks: JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Ruby, Golang, Java, React, Angular, Vue.js, Svelte, Node.js, Django, Flask, Ruby on Rails, FastAPI
• Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, DynamoDB, Redis
• Cloud & DevOps: AWS (Lambda, EC2, S3, RDS), GCP (App Engine, Firestore), Azure, Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, Jenkins, GitHub Actions
• Other Tools: GraphQL, REST APIs, WebSockets, Kafka, RabbitMQ, Elasticsearch

What Happens Next?

• Submit your application to join SignalFire’s Talent Ecosystem.
• We review applications on an ongoing basis to identify strong candidates.
• If there’s a match, a SignalFire talent partner or a leader from one of our startups may reach out directly.
• No match yet? We’ll keep your profile on file for future full-stack engineering roles in our portfolio.

Compensation Range: $170K - $270K