Software Engineer - Backend

Location: Ottawa, ON — Onsite

Reports to: Engineering Lead

The role

We are looking for a Backend Software Engineer to build the systems that power AuraNet, our mesh networking platform for autonomous systems operating in contested and disconnected environments.

You will work across distributed infrastructure, networking, and security to build reliable backend services that connect an ever-growing fleet of autonomous assets. This is a hands-on engineering role for someone who enjoys solving hard technical problems, moving quickly, and building software that has real-world impact.

You'll work closely with software, hardware, autonomy, and platform engineers to create scalable systems that enable resilient communications at the edge.

What you'll do

• Design and build high-performance backend services for data ingestion, processing, and real-time distribution.
• Develop and optimize pub/sub networking capabilities using Zenoh to support low-latency communications and end-to-end encrypted mesh networking.
• Build and maintain GraphQL and REST APIs that power operator interfaces, internal tooling, and external integrations.
• Create integrations with flight stacks, simulation environments, and external applications, including MAVLink, ArduPilot, Unreal Engine, and Gazebo.
• Develop secure asset management workflows using certificate-based authentication and PKI infrastructure.
• Build automated testing frameworks and contribute to CI/CD pipelines that ensure reliability and rapid iteration.
• Review code, maintain engineering standards, and contribute to the overall architecture of the platform.
• Work across disciplines to integrate software into deployed autonomous systems.

What we're looking for

• Strong understanding of networking fundamentals, including TCP/IP, UDP, and publish/subscribe architectures.
• Experience with security concepts such as end-to-end encryption, PKI, authentication, and authorization.
• Professional experience developing backend systems in Go, Python, Java, C++, or a similar language.
• Experience building and shipping distributed systems in production environments.
• Ability to move quickly, solve ambiguous problems, and deliver pragmatic solutions.
• Strong software engineering fundamentals and a commitment to writing clean, maintainable code.

Bonus points

• Experience with mesh networking or distributed communication systems.
• Familiarity with Zenoh or similar messaging technologies.
• Experience integrating with robotics, UAV, or autonomous platforms.
• Exposure to simulation environments such as Unreal Engine or Gazebo.
• Experience working with Linux-based systems and containerized deployments.

No defence background required

We've hired exceptional people who didn't tick every box.

If you're excited by the mission, love solving hard technical problems, and want to build technology with real-world impact, we encourage you to apply.

Why join us

Building something meaningful starts with the right people. At Dominion Dynamics, you'll:

• Shape Canada's future by building real defence capability for the Canadian Armed Forces and our allies.
• Make decisions and ship in a high-trust environment with short feedback loops and rapid iteration.
• Move fast, field faster, and work directly with operators , our systems are already deployed with the CAF.
• Have an impact from day one with ownership, responsibility, equity, and direct access to leadership.

If you're curious, hands-on, and driven by the opportunity to make a difference, this is where you belong.

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive base salary and company equity.
• Comprehensive health benefits.
• Additional equity grants based on impact and contribution.

We use AI tools to support parts of the hiring process, including screening and reviewing responses. Final hiring decisions are always made by people and follow all applicable privacy and employment laws in Canada.