Engineering Lead - Backend & AI

As Engineering Lead, you will report directly to the Founder and lead the backend and AI engineering team — owning how our products are designed and built, while staying hands-on in the code. The role spans everything Bluno builds — products for exporters, importers, banks and ecosystem partners, delivered in the cloud and inside clients' own infrastructure.

Responsibilities:

• Own application architecture across our Java / Spring Boot services and Python AI services, and stay hands-on in design, code and code reviews.
• Design products that run reliably and securely both in the cloud and inside clients' own infrastructure.
• Own application security — authentication, permissions, data handling and secure coding standards.
• Plan and deliver the roadmap with the Founder and product team, making trade-offs explicit.
• Decide where AI, fixed rules or human review should handle each step, and take AI features from prototype to production.
• Hire, mentor and grow the backend and AI engineers, and set standards for code quality and testing.

Requirements:

• 6-9 years in software engineering, including at least 2 years leading a team of 3 or more engineers, and a degree in Computer Science, Engineering or a related field.
• Deep backend expertise in Java and Spring Boot, with strong system design and SQL databases.
• Hands-on experience shipping LLM-powered features to production — RAG, agent workflows or document AI — and the judgment to know when AI is the right tool.
• Experience building software for regulated industries such as banking or fintech, including on-premises deployments.
• Good to have: Python, working knowledge of AWS and Kubernetes, and experience with trade, payments or compliance products.
• Clear communication with founders, customers and partner teams, and comfort with startup pace.