Backend Engineer (m/f/d)

Deepslate; Germany (OH); Hybrid; USD 93,000 - 127,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible work hours

Virtual open office environment

Total autonomy without hierarchy

Job summary

A leading AI startup is looking for a backend developer to architect and scale their voice AI infrastructure. The ideal candidate has expertise in Kotlin, Spring Boot, and Java, alongside a strong command of PostgreSQL. You will work on high-performance backend systems with a focus on building reliable APIs for millions of users. The position is remote, supporting flexible work hours, and requires fluent German for effective communication within the team.

Qualifications

• Solid professional experience in Kotlin, Spring Boot, and Java.
• Strong command of PostgreSQL and building/managing Distributed Services.
• Hands-on experience with self-managed Kubernetes deployments.
• A true startup mindset: navigate early-stage codebase.
• Drive and vision to actively shape the product and take ownership.

Responsibilities

• Architect and implement new backend features by expanding the core API structure.
• Build and scale infrastructure to handle thousands of concurrent calls.
• Write consistent code with advanced error handling.
• Troubleshoot and resolve live production issues.
• Tooling & DevEx: design internal tools to improve implementation and testing pipelines.
• Sustainable Architecture: create scalable interfaces to onboard more users with low maintenance.
• Observability: expand logging and tracing to improve incident response.

Skills

Kotlin

Spring Boot

Java

PostgreSQL

Distributed Services

Kubernetes

Fluent German

Drive & Vision

Job description

Location: Remote / Berlin (Office available) | Language Requirement: Fluent German

At Deepslate, we are building Speech to Speech Voice AI models that sound and act indistinguishable from a human.

When it comes to text and images, giants like OpenAI and Google have already cracked the code. With video, Veo3, Sora and others are closing the gap rapidly. But voice remains a highly complex unsolved frontier.

That is exactly why we started Deepslate.

Backed by top-tier investors from the Tech and AI sectors, as well as a major German VC fund, we are well-funded and moving fast.

We are building the future of communication.

We aren't trying to build another standalone platform; instead, we are the intelligence engine powering countless other applications. Whether it's plugged into another Voice AI platform, or directly embedded into an enterprise system by our integration partners - our model is everywhere.

Your Role

Your mission is to architect, scale, and bulletproof this very foundation.

From user management and agent systems to raw performance optimization and observability: You are building the core of our infrastructure.

What You\'ll Do: Scale Deepslate and Make it Accessible to the World:

You’ll work on building reliable, high-performance backend systems and APIs that serve millions of users and developers. Your work will directly impact the developer and user experience, making it more engaging, efficient, and intuitive.

• Architect & Implement: Design and build new backend features by expanding our core API structure.

• Scalability: Build and scale infrastructure capable of handling thousands of concurrent calls without breaking a sweat.

• Reliability-First: Write rock-solid, consistent code. Champion advanced error handling and idempotency.

• Production Ownership: Troubleshoot and resolve live production issues, and build the systems that ensure they never happen again.

Elevate Our Engineering Quality to the Next Level:

• Tooling & DevEx: Design and build internal tools that make implementation a breeze (e.g., integration test frameworks, feature rollout pipelines).

• Sustainable Architecture: Build highly scalable interfaces that allow us to onboard more users while keeping maintenance overhead low.

• Observability: Expand our logging and debugging to drastically improve incident response and tracing.

What We’re Looking For:Must-Haves:

• Solid professional experience in Kotlin, Spring Boot, and Java.

• Strong command of PostgreSQL and building/managing Distributed Services.

• Hands-on experience with self-managed Kubernetes deployments.

• A true startup mindset: You are comfortable navigating the glorious chaos of an early-stage codebase (inconsistent structures, missing docs. You name it, you’ll help fix it).

• Drive and Vision: You aren\'t just looking to blindly process Jira tickets. You want to actively shape the product, architect solutions, and take extreme ownership.

Nice-to-Haves:

• Previous experience in a fast-paced Startup or DeepTech environment.

• Experience with incident response, compliance development, or high-security environments.

• Fluent German skills (spoken and written).

How We Work:

• Virtual Open Office: Our dev team is fully remote and uses TeamSpeak as our primary hub. It acts as an "always-on" virtual open-plan office where you can drop in and chat.

• Opt-in Culture: How much you want to hang out in TeamSpeak is entirely up to you. Need to focus? Mute notifications and dive into deep work.

• Flexibility: We trust your time management and embrace asynchronous work. There is no strict 9-to-5 mandate. You can structure your working hours around your peak productivity, as long as it aligns with core team needs. We care about sustainable, healthy work habits just as much as we care about great code.

• Total Autonomy: We offer an immense amount of freedom and operate without unnecessary hierarchy. We focus on your output and impact, not on micro-managing your schedule. We are looking for engineers who thrive in a high-trust environment and know how to manage their own time responsibly.

Deepslate is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, or sexual orientation.