Python Backend Developer

Synhawk – AI Voice Security Platform

Location: Prague/Hybrid
Type: Full-time
Start: ASAP

About Synhawk

Synhawk builds next-generation AI voice security for telco operators. Our platform detects deepfake voice and synthetic media in real time, running directly inside on-prem telco networks where latency, reliability, and security are non-negotiable.

We’re past the research phase and actively deploying with our first major telco customers. This is real infrastructure: on-prem GPU clusters, air-gapped environments, strict SLAs, and systems that must work flawlessly from day one.

We’re a small, highly technical, founder-led team. Joining now means shaping core systems, architecture, and engineering standards at a critical moment in the company’s growth.

Role Overview

We’re hiring a Senior Python Backend Engineer to own and evolve the backend layer powering Synhawk’s AI platform. You’ll design and scale the services that expose our ML models to production - turning cutting-edge research into reliable, low-latency systems used by telco operators at scale.

This role sits at the intersection of backend engineering, ML inference, and infrastructure. You’ll work closely with ML engineers, infra, and product, and have a strong voice in technical decisions from day one.

What You’ll Do

Backend & Platform Architecture

• Design and own Python-based backend services powering AI inference (FastAPI preferred)

• Define clean, versioned gRPC APIs for inference, scoring, metadata, and monitoring

• Build scalable, modular pipelines for audio ingestion, preprocessing, inference, and post-processing

• Set standards for API design, documentation, and backend architecture

AI Inference & Performance

• Integrate and operate GPU-accelerated inference (PyTorch, ONNX Runtime, Triton, or similar)

• Optimize for real-world workloads: batching, async processing, caching, multiprocessing

• Handle streaming and batch audio inputs (SIPREC/SRTP/files)

• Work hands-on with performance profiling, latency tuning, and throughput optimization

On-Prem & Production Deployments

• Own containerized deployments (Docker) for on-prem and restricted environments

• Deploy into highly secured, air-gapped telco networks with custom constraints

• Work with Kubernetes or bare-metal orchestration, depending on client infrastructure

• Design CI/CD pipelines for offline deployments and controlled upgrades

Reliability, Observability & Quality

• Define and implement metrics for latency, GPU utilization, confidence scores, and system health

• Build logging, tracing, and observability suitable for regulated telco operations

• Drive testing strategy across APIs and pipeline components

• Actively raise the bar on reliability, security, and operational excellence

What We’re Looking For

Must-haves

• 3+ years of experience in Python backend engineering

• Strong experience building production-grade APIs and distributed systems

• Deep familiarity with FastAPI, Flask, or similar frameworks

• Solid understanding of async systems, queues, multiprocessing, and concurrency

• Hands-on experience with Docker and real-world deployment workflows

• Comfortable operating in on-prem, high-security, or air-gapped environments

• Strong instincts around performance, observability, and system reliability

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with real-time audio processing or telecom systems (VoIP, SIP, RTP/SRTP, SIPREC)

• Kubernetes (or OpenShift) experience in restricted networks

• Model optimization (quantization, TensorRT, inference schedulers)

• CI/CD for offline or regulated environments

• Background in cybersecurity, telco infrastructure, or critical systems

• Familiarity with NIS2 / GDPR environments

• Experience shipping ML models (PyTorch / ONNX) into production

Who You Are

• You want real ownership and technical influence, not just tickets

• You’re comfortable making architectural decisions - and standing behind them

• You enjoy bridging research, infrastructure, and production systems

• You thrive in early-stage environments with speed, trust, and responsibility

• You care deeply about quality, security, and systems that actually work

What We Offer

• A senior role shaping a mission-critical AI security platform

• Work on real deepfake detection deployed in production telco networks

• Strong influence over architecture, tooling, and engineering culture

• Access to high-performance GPU infrastructure (including H100 clusters)

• Competitive compensation + equity (discussed individually)

• Beautiful offices in the heart of Prague

• A focused, founder-led team with minimal process and maximum impact