Founding Security Engineer

Schemata; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Top-tier benefits

In-person SF culture

Flexible work arrangement

Job summary

Schemata is building a security-first platform for cutting-edge AI-enabled virtual training. You will own security architecture, drive red-teaming of AI systems, and lead monitoring and incident response in a fast-growing startup.

The role emphasizes implementing controls across IAM, network, data, and code, while evidencing compliance with NIST 800-53, SOC 2, and related standards. Join a high-ownership team in San Francisco with equity and comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• Security engineering or cloud security with hands-on implementation ownership.
• Deep AWS security expertise: IAM, VPC, KMS, GuardDuty, least-privilege.
• Application security: authN/authZ design, secure code review, threat modeling.
• Ability to write real code (Python) to automate controls and tooling.
• Experience with at least one compliance framework (NIST 800-53, FedRAMP, SOC 2, ISO 27001).
• Container and Kubernetes security: image hardening, runtime policy, supply chain integrity.
• Backend or infrastructure skills to ship a service and fix CI pipelines.
• Clear communication with non-security engineers and customer security teams alike.

Responsibilities

• Own the security architecture across the platform and review designs.
• Red team AI systems and assess prompt injection, jailbreaks, and data poisoning.
• Implement continuous security monitoring and vulnerability management.
• Run detection and response, triage incidents, and improve runbooks.
• Ensure compliance with NIST SP 800-53 and SOC 2 controls, FedRAMP/ATO efforts.

Skills

Security engineering

AWS security

App security

Python automation

Compliance frameworks

Kubernetes security

Infrastructure as code

Communication

Tools

Terraform

Job description

About Schemata

At Schemata, we are transforming the $400 B virtual‑training and simulation market by fusing 3D computer vision, neural rendering and large multimodal models inside highly regulated industries. Our platform delivers photorealistic, intelligent 3D experiences, demanding robust spatial reasoning, high‑performance data pipelines and seamless integration between traditional graphics and AI‑driven perception.

Core Responsibilities

• Own the security architecture: define and implement how identity, authorization, tenancy isolation, encryption and audit logging work across our platform, and review designs before they become expensive to change

• Red team our AI systems: probe the LLM and spatial reasoning surfaces the way an adversary would through prompt injection, jailbreaks, tool-use and agent abuse, retrieval and training data poisoning, model extraction, and the failure modes specific to grounding models in customer documents and 3D scenes..

• Implement continuous security monitoring: own the security pipeline (SAST/DAST, dependency and container scanning, secrets detection, IaC policy checks) and the vulnerability management that follows from it.

• Run detection and response: own the security monitoring pipeline day to day. Triage, investigation, containment and post-incident review. Be the person who gets paged, and make each incident produce a durable change: a new detection, a closed gap, a corrected runbook.

• Make sure we’re compliant: implement and evidence NIST SP 800-53 and SOC 2 controls, support FedRAMP and ATO efforts, and manage POA&M tracking and remediation.

Essential Skills & Experience

• Strong experience in security engineering, application security or cloud security with hands‑on implementation ownership, not purely policy or GRC.

• Deep AWS security expertise: IAM design, VPC and network controls, KMS, GuardDuty/Security Hub, and least‑privilege at scale.

• Strong applied knowledge of application security: authN/authZ design, common vulnerability classes, secure code review, threat modeling.

• Ability to write real code (Python) to automate controls, evidence collection and tooling.

• Working knowledge of at least one major compliance framework (NIST 800-53/RMF, FedRAMP, SOC 2, or ISO 27001) and the practical work of evidencing controls.

• Container and Kubernetes security experience: image hardening, runtime policy, supply chain integrity.

• Enough backend or infrastructure ability to be a genuine extra pair of hands outside security: shipping a service, writing a Terraform module, fixing a CI pipeline.

• Clear communication with non-security engineers and with customer security teams alike.

Nice to Have

• Federal authorization experience: running or supporting an ATO, working with AOs and ISSOs, FISMA continuous monitoring.

• Certifications such as CISSP, OSCP, CCSP, CAP, or GIAC equivalents.

• Experience securing ML/AI systems: model supply chain, data governance, prompt injection and inference abuse.

• Familiarity with DISA STIGs, NIST 800-171, CMMC or CUI handling requirements.

• Experience being the first security hire at a startup and building the function from zero.

• Defense, aerospace, energy or other regulated‑industry experience; active or ability to obtain U.S. security clearance.

Why Join Us?

• Collaborate with world‑class engineers and researchers in a high‑ownership environment.

• Competitive upside, meaningful equity, top‑tier benefits and whatever gear you need to excel, with an in‑person culture in San Francisco and flexibility for the right fit.