Senior Full Stack Engineer — Scientific Data | San Mateo, CA (On-site)

zella-group; San Mateo (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

zella-group in San Mateo, California, seeks a Senior Full Stack Engineer to build the data infrastructure powering its central platform. You’ll work on ingestion, normalization, and the full stack with Python backend and TypeScript/Next.js frontend, collaborating with scientists to translate domain problems into production software.

This early-stage role offers significant ownership, a 5-day on-site workweek, and a compensation package in the $180K–$220K range plus competitive equity.

Qualifications

• 4–8 years of full-stack engineering with hands-on data infrastructure experience.
• Comfortable operating with high ownership in a very early-stage environment.
• Experience building platforms that handle messy, heterogeneous data at scale.

Responsibilities

• Build core data infrastructure: ingestion, normalization, storage, indexing.
• Ship across the full stack — Python backend, TypeScript/Next.js frontend.
• Design schemas that make heterogeneous lab data queryable.
• Work directly with scientists to translate domain problems into working software.
• Own reliability and make smart tradeoffs on quality vs. speed.

Skills

Full-stack engineering

Ownership in early-stage environment

Data infrastructure

Scientific data handling

Education

4–8 years of experience

Tools

Python

TypeScript

Next.js

Django

GCP

SQL

Job description

Senior Full Stack Engineer — Scientific Data Infrastructure | San Mateo, CA (On-site)

Client is a 3-person startup with strong pedigree from Google, Stanford, building the missing data layer for scientific research — connecting instruments, spreadsheets, and data sources into a central AI-ready platform.

$3M seed, working with companies, academic labs, and DOE national labs. Demand is outpacing the team.

You'll be an early and highly leveraged hire shaping core infrastructure used by world‑class scientists.

What you'll do

• Build core data infrastructure: ingestion, normalization, storage, indexing
• Ship across the full stack — Python backend, TypeScript/Next.js frontend
• Design schemas that make heterogeneous lab data queryable
• Work directly with scientists to translate domain problems into working software
• Own reliability and make smart tradeoffs on quality vs. speed

Stack:

Python, TypeScript, Next.js, Django, GCP, SQL

Strong fit if you have:

• 4–8 years full-stack engineering with hands‑on data infrastructure experience
• Comfortable operating with high ownership in a very early‑stage environment
• Experience building platforms that handle messy, heterogeneous data at scale

Details:

• Full-time, 5 days on-site in San Mateo
• $180K–$220K depending on experience + competitive equity
• Visa sponsorship considered case by case