Junior Back-End Engineer

Loka® Inc; Portugal; Remote; EUR 26,000 - 38,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work across time zones

Relocation programs (international)

Every other Friday off

LokaLabs access

Paid sick days

Fitness/Mental health subscriptions

Defined career path

Job summary

Loka Inc. is seeking a Junior Backend Engineer to join our fully remote, globally distributed team. You’ll work with experienced engineers on real client projects, building fast, reliable backend services using Python or Node.js and growing your skills under mentorship.

You’ll participate in design discussions, learn about scalable architectures, and contribute to secure, maintainable code while collaborating across ML, data, and engineering teams.

Qualifications

• 1–2 years of backend development experience.
• Fluency in Python or Node.js (TypeScript).
• Solid computer science foundation and understanding of API/Web protocols.

Responsibilities

• Build backend components like APIs and serverless functions with guidance from senior engineers.
• Join design discussions on architectural decisions and best practices.
• Apply security and data protection principles in daily work.
• Write clean, tested code and documentation with code reviews.

Skills

Backend development

Python/Node.js

CS foundation

API protocols

Concurrency concepts

Containerization

Job description

Years from now, history will look back at this moment as a landmark for the human race—the moment when generative AI began to change everything.

If you’re one of those rare people driven to add their intellectual energy to the relentless momentum of technological advancement, consider Loka your optimal leverage point.

Loka, a globally distributed tech consultancy based in Silicon Valley, is looking for a Junior Backend Engineer to grow with our team. You’ll work side by side with experienced engineers on real client projects, helping design and build backend applications that are fast, reliable and secure. If you have a foundation in Python and/or Node.js and you’re eager to learn, you’ll get hands‑on experience across a variety of projects, with mentors who care about helping you level up.

We count more than 100 certified specialists, technical experts and PhDs among our teammates, all of whom contribute their brilliance to serving our clients as well as to mentoring junior colleagues. We work entirely remotely, test new ideas with an in‑house incubator called LokaLabs, observe local holidays and take every other Friday off (really). We’re as proud of our culture as we are of our projects. You will be too.

The Role

• Build backend components like APIs, serverless functions, queue systems, and data storage services, with guidance from senior engineers as you learn the ropes.
• Join design discussions to learn how architectural decisions get made, asking questions and sharing ideas as your understanding grows.
• Pick up security and data‑protection best practices and apply them in your day‑to‑day work.
• Write clean, well‑tested code and clear documentation, with code reviews that help you sharpen your skills.
• Join conversations with technical leads and clients to see how requirements are gathered and projects are delivered, and share updates on your own work.
• Grow along Loka's career track, with clear expectations and support as you build your skills, independence, and confidence.
• Report to a Backend Lead who will mentor you and support your development.
• Explore new tools and techniques, with room to experiment and bring fresh ideas to the team.
• Collaborate with teams across Machine Learning, Data Engineering, and more, getting exposure to how different parts of a system fit together.
• Take ownership of your tasks and see them through, knowing your team has your back when you need help.

Required Hard Skills

• 1 to 2 years of backend development.
• Fluency in Python or Node.js (TypeScript).
• A solid computer science foundation.
• Understanding of API/Web communication protocols (OpenAPI, gRPC, etc.).
• Understand concurrency concepts in APIs/Web.
• Capable of working container‑first.

Not Required but Nice to Have

• Languages: Go, Typescript, PHP, Ruby.
• Frameworks: Django, FastAPI, NextJS, Express, Laravel, RoR.
• Understand traditional and serverless architectures.
• Experience working with AWS.
• Experience working with and building CI/CD pipelines.
• Experience with DevOps tools ((AWS CDK, CDKTF or Terraform).
• Experience with generative AI tools and services.
• Experience with observability tools and stacks.

Additional Requirements

• Excellent English: As a global team we work entirely in English for meetings, customer calls and business communications

Personality Profile

• Curious: You want to learn and grow across different industries with a modern tech stack.
• Autonomous and positive: You thrive on a fully remote, globally distributed team.
• Team player: You enjoy a collaborative approach.
• Adaptable: You operate with a startup mindset and move at a startup pace.
• Every other Friday off (26 extra days off a year)
• Remote and flexible
• Explore and Relocation programs (three months work abroad or full international relo)
• Paid sick days and local holidays
• Business English classes program
• Fitnessand/or Mental Health Subscriptions
• Access to LokaLabs, our internal research and development program
• Defined career path

Your achievements matter to us! Be sure your CV, LinkedIn and GitHub profiles are up to date, written in English and accurately reflect your experience.