Backend Engineer

Summary

Join Launch Potato, a dynamic digital media company, as a Backend Engineer specializing in ML infrastructure. You will collaborate with the Data Science team, deploying and supporting machine learning pipelines and endpoints. Responsibilities include maintaining backend services, troubleshooting production issues, and enhancing infrastructure using tools like Terraform, ECS, and Lambda. You will contribute to CI/CD workflows and participate in code reviews. Success requires proven experience with containerized Python/Django (or FastAPI) services, AWS deployment, and strong SQL and CI/CD skills. Compensation includes a base salary, profit-sharing bonus, and competitive benefits.

Requirements

• Experience with containerized Python/Django (or FastAPI) services, including deployment on AWS
• Proven track record collaborating with Data Science teams and deploying ML endpoints to production
• Proficiency in troubleshooting production bugs in systems with limited QA support
• Strong grasp of SQL databases, CI/CD (especially CircleCI), and infrastructure as code (Terraform preferred)
• Comfortable contributing ideas, giving peer feedback via pull requests, and driving technical improvements autonomously
• 4+ years of professional development experience using Python and deploying backend systems using Python frameworks like Django or FastAPI

Responsibilities

• Deploy machine learning pipeline and endpoint changes in partnership with the Data Science team, ensuring scalable, production-grade integrations
• Identify and remove backend bottlenecks that limit the Data Science team’s ability to experiment, iterate, and deploy new models
• Maintain and improve backend services owned by the team, with a focus on reliability, performance, and clarity of ownership
• Troubleshoot, debug, and resolve production issues across LP services, even without a dedicated QA team
• Stand up and maintain infrastructure using tools like Terraform, ECS, and Lambda in a containerized AWS environment
• Contribute to continuous deployment pipelines and improve CI/CD workflows using tools like CircleCI
• Participate in and lead thoughtful code reviews that enable knowledge sharing and promote best practices
• Deliver maintainable and testable code using frameworks like Django and tools such as Pytest, while fostering a culture of shared responsibility and mentorship
• Approach projects with a product-oriented mindset—understanding how backend systems connect to user-facing goals and company OKRs
• Proactively suggest engineering improvements or inefficiencies based on your knowledge of team workflows and LP’s product ecosystem

Preferred Qualifications

Terraform

Benefits

• Profit-sharing bonus
• Competitive benefits