Senior Software Engineer (Pittsburgh)

Madrona Venture Labs; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401k matching

Paid vacation

Health insurance

Catered lunches

Flexible work

Visa sponsorship

Job summary

Gray Swan AI in Pittsburgh is hiring a software engineer to build end-to-end features across the stack, from frontend to backend APIs and databases. You’ll turn ideas into real products and push production code with minimal process.

You should have solid full-stack experience, learn new technologies quickly, and own your work. Join a fast-growing team that values autonomy and impact, with opportunities to shape AI safety-driven applications.

Qualifications

• Proficiency in TypeScript or JavaScript.
• Experience with frontend frameworks such as React, Vue, or Svelte.
• Solid understanding of HTML and CSS.
• Hands-on experience building backend APIs.
• Knowledge of database systems (SQL or NoSQL; MongoDB is a plus).

Responsibilities

• Design and develop web applications using modern frontend frameworks like Svelte.
• Build intuitive and user-friendly interfaces that delight users.
• Develop and maintain backend APIs using tools like FastAPI.
• Manage and optimize database systems like MongoDB.
• Collaborate with ML research team to integrate AI experiences into products.

Skills

TypeScript / JavaScript

Frontend frameworks

HTML / CSS

Backend APIs

Databases

Tools

FastAPI

MongoDB

SvelteKit

Git

Job description

About Gray Swan

Gray Swan is on a mission to empower the world to use AI safely and securely. We evaluate AI models for the leading frontier labs along with building real-time threat detection and adaptive adversarial red teaming agents for teams deploying AI.

We’re a team of approximately 50 people, well-funded, growing quickly. Our work directly influences how the world deploys AI agents and systems at scale..

Learn more about how we work.

The Role

We’re looking for a software engineer who wants to build things end to end and doesn’t mind getting their hands dirty. You’ll work across the stack—frontend, backend APIs, and databases—helping us turn ideas into real product and improve what’s already in production.

You don’t need to have used every tool we use. What matters is that you have solid full-stack experience, pick up new technologies quickly, and are comfortable owning work without a lot of process or hand-holding. We are still in the early stages of our growth, so if you like autonomy, responsibility, and moving fast, then please apply for this opportunity!

What You’ll Do:

• Design and develop web applications using modern frontend frameworks like Svelte
• Build intuitive and user-friendly interfaces that delight users
• Develop and maintain backend APIs using tools like FastAPI
• Manage and optimize database systems like MongoDB
• Collaborate with our ML research team to integrate AI experiences into our products

Who You Are:

• Proficiency in TypeScript or JavaScript
• Experience with frontend frameworks such as React, Vue, or Svelte
• Solid understanding of HTML and CSS
• Hands-on experience building backend APIs
• Knowledge of database systems (SQL or NoSQL; MongoDB is a plus)

Bonus Points If You Have:

• SvelteKit experience
• Python proficiency and AI/ML framework exposure
• Experience in creating AI-driven applications
• Experience deploying and scaling applications on cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Google Cloud, Azure)
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices to streamline development workflows
• Knowledge of secure coding practices and mitigating vulnerabilities in web applications
• Contributions to open-source projects or an active GitHub/portfolio showcasing relevant work
• Experience with testing frameworks (e.g., Jest, Playwright) to ensure code quality
• Understanding of AI safety principles or ethical considerations in AI systems

If you don’t have 100% of these, you should still seriously consider applying. We care more about what you can do than your credentials.

You’ll Thrive Here If You:

• You’ve learned things about your code only production traffic can teach
• You’re comfortable debugging across the stack – from browser devtools to database query plans.
• You’ve worked in environments where moving fast matters and you know how to balance speed with sustainability.
• You’re interested in applying your security mindset to AI, where the threat model is still being written

What We Offer:

We offer a competitive compensation package designed to reward impact and incentivize growth. Our compensation philosophy is informed by our current valuation and recent industry data.

Compensation: $180k-$220k plus performance based bonus and meaningful equity package

Benefits:

• 401k with up to 4% matching
• 28 days annual leave (vacation + holidays)
• Health, dental, and vision coverage
• Catered lunches (Pittsburgh office)
• Flexible work arrangements
• Visa sponsorship available for exceptional candidates

Interview Process

Application review. We read everything; we’ll respond within 10 days.

Online technical screen (15 min). Complete a simple, job-relevant exercise.

Intro call (30 min). We learn about you; you learn about us.

Technical interview (90 min). Live coding with some tasks requiring AI and others not.

Experience & culture interview (60 min). Conversational exploration of the skills fit.

Reference checks. We’ll reach out to 3-5 references that you provide.

Offer. If it’s mutual, we move fast.