Senior Backend Engineer - Remote Eligible

Senior Backend Engineer

At Genestack we are tackling the underlying computational and scientific challenges of bioinformatics in order to provide researchers with software tools that will streamline the discovery process and drive forward precision medicine, drug development, and bioinformatics research.

We are seeking a Senior Backend Engineer to join our Biological Knowledge Base (BioKB) team.

BioKB is an R&D-driven platform that integrates and mines biological knowledge from ontologies, scientific literature, and structured databases. The system enables researchers to query and visualize complex relationships between biological entities and processes.

We are looking for someone who enjoys diving into complex problems, exploring edge cases, refining abstractions, and designing elegant, long-lived solutions. The balance here favors technical excellence and depth over rapid iteration.

In this role, you will:

• design and evolve core backend services of a cloud-based knowledge platform;
• develop and refine the query engine responsible for DSL execution;
• contribute to the design and evolution of domain-specific languages;
• work with Projectional Editor technology for DSL authoring;
• design thoughtful abstractions for complex biological data models;
• break down large research-heavy problems into pragmatic, well-structured increments;
• maintain a high engineering bar through code reviews and architectural discussions;
• collaborate with product and research stakeholders on scope, trade-offs, and long-term direction.

We would like you to have:

• 8+ years of experience in backend software engineering;
• strong proficiency in Kotlin (Java is a plus);
• deep understanding of OOP, data structures, and algorithms;
• strong experience with Spring and backend system design;
• experience designing and evolving system architecture;
• solid understanding of SQL (PostgreSQL is preferred);
• experience with microservice architectures;
• strong skills in performance optimization, profiling, and testing;
• ability to work independently on complex, research-oriented problems;
• high standards for code quality, readability, and maintainability;
• proactive engineering mindset and ownership of outcomes;
• enthusiasm for exploring AI tools and using them extensively;
• strong verbal and written English communication skills;
• interest in biological data and scientific applications.

It would be nice if you have:

• experience with NoSQL or graph databases;
• experience designing or implementing DSLs;
• experience with AWS and Kubernetes;
• full-stack experience (Kotlin/JS is preferred);
• knowledge of biology or genetics.

Why Join BioKB:

• You will work on intellectually challenging problems at the intersection of software engineering and biology.
• To have an opportunity to build long-term, elegant solutions rather than short-lived features.
• You will play an active role in shaping domain models and language design.
• Close collaboration with engineers and scientists is a core part of building these research-driven systems.

We offer you:

• international team of professionals;
• fully paid sick leaves;
• onboarding and domain training for newcomers;
• flexible work schedule.