What are the responsibilities and job description for the Senior Backend Engineer position at daylight?
About Daylight
Daylight is the decentralized energy company. We're building a protocol that converts distributed solar and storage systems into yield-bearing infrastructure. These assets are deployed behind the meter in American homes and businesses, generating electricity revenues that flow onchain as a single, liquid yield token. Our ambition is to build the economic engine for energy abundance—where capital fuels power, and power fuels everything.
Our team brings together energy and crypto veterans who believe in a future where communities power themselves. Backed by a16z, Framework, and other industry-leading investors, we're building the infrastructure to make that vision a reality. Learn more at www.godaylight.com
The Role
As a Senior Backend Developer at Daylight, you'll play a crucial role in developing our Django APIs and backend services that support our mobile app and partner integrations. You'll build functionality that helps homeowners monitor, control, and optimize their energy usage while participating in our decentralized energy network.
We're an early-stage startup, so this role goes beyond just writing code. You'll have significant input on architecture decisions, user experience, and product direction. As we scale, there will be opportunities to grow into a leadership or management position, mentoring junior developers and shaping our mobile development strategy.
This role is ideal for someone who is passionate about crypto and clean energy, values craftsmanship in their code, and thrives in dynamic startup environments where your work has a direct impact on the product's success and the company's mission.
This role is in-person in our New York City office.
Responsibilities
- GraphQL & REST API Development
- Design and build robust GraphQL queries and mutations that power our mobile app and are tailored for mobile performance
- Architect, develop, and maintain scalable API endpoints that support vendor/partner integrations
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define, design, and ship innovative features
- Continuously monitor performance and resolve bottlenecks and bugs across all endpoints
- Champion code quality, automation, and comprehensive testing practices
- CRM & Internal Tools Development
- Leverage and extend Django’s admin interface to build a feature-rich internal CRM and administration portal
- Customize the Django admin site to meet evolving business and workflow needs
- Work with stakeholders to refine internal processes and drive user-friendly administrative solutions
- Technical Architecture & DevOps
- Contribute to architecture planning and drive technical design decisions that ensure scalability and security
- Optimize the application stack for maximum speed and reliability
- Embrace CI/CD methodologies and infrastructure-as-code practices to streamline deployments
- Evaluate and integrate emerging technologies that enhance our backend ecosystem
What we’re looking for
| Must Haves
- 3 years of experience developing APIs and backend services
- Strong understanding of API Development and best practices
- Experience with Python, Django, PostgreSQL and Redis
- Proficiency in writing clean, readable, and well-documented code
- Experience with REST APIs, GraphQL, and network request handling
- Familiarity with version control systems, particularly Git
- Knowledge of backend performance profiling and optimization techniques
- Experience with testing and managing AWS infrastructure and Kubernetes
- Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with changing requirements
- Strong problem-solving skills and attention to detail
| Nice to Haves
- Experience with Celery, Django admin sites, integrating with smart contracts
- Familiarity with crypto and related infrastructure, specifically EVM
- Experience with continuous integration and delivery processes
- Contributions to open-source projects
- Understanding of energy markets and renewable energy systems
What we offer
- Competitive salary and equity package
- Opportunity to shape a category-defining product from the ground up
- Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance
- Wellhub membership
- Monthly wellness stipend
Daylight values diversity and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates. We're building technology that serves everyone, and we believe diverse perspectives make our team and our product stronger.