Founding Deployment Engineer
Job Summary
What This Company Actually Does
This is a European defence software startup operating between Paris and Warsaw. They build software for military and police units tools designed to work in hostile constrained real-world conditions. No weapons systems no hardware. Pure software deployed into environments most developers never see.
They are in stealth already recognized as one of Frances top 20 seed companies and backed by Project A (a leading European defence VC) alongside angel investors who founded Cloudflare Quantum Systems and ElevenLabs.
What Youll Actually Do
This is a founding-team role meaning you are among the first hires and your fingerprints will be on how this company operates. Day to day you will:
Deploy working software prototypes directly with early military and police customers in Warsaw
Travel frequently to customer sites this is not occasional it is a core part of the job
Close the gap between what the product does in general and what each customer needs in the field meaning bespoke integrations quick patches and adaptations that dont scale yet
Work with real-time audio streaming systems and low-latency voice technology
Communicate complex technical behaviour clearly to non-technical people in high-stakes settings since commanding officers are not engineers
Work directly with the founders with no PM layer no sprint ceremonies no tickets handed down from above
What the Work Is Actually Like
Rapid prototyping is the mode not the exception. You will regularly work with incomplete briefs short timelines and customers who expect things to work under pressure. Solutions often wont be elegant. Getting real-world signal from the field matters more right now than clean abstractions. This is intentional not a failure of planning.
You will also be operating in environments that are new to most software engineers. Military and police organisations have distinct decision-making structures security constraints and operational cultures. If youve never worked near these environments before be honest with yourself. This gap is real and will show up early.
What You Need to Bring
Must-haves:
Solid software engineering generalist skills comfortable across the stack able to ship without ideal conditions
Hands-on experience implementing AI systems in resource-constrained or operationally sensitive environments (edge devices degraded networks field hardware)
Working knowledge of audio processing and real-time/low-latency systems you dont need to be a specialist but you need to be comfortable getting into it
High tolerance for ambiguity meaning you figure things out rather than waiting for a clearer brief
Strong advantage (honestly assessed):
Prior experience working with or inside military or police organisations. Understanding how these customers think buy and operate makes a concrete difference in this role.
What You Wont Find Here
Remote work. This role is on-site in Warsaw with regular travel to customer locations.
A large team to hide in. This is a small senior group where everyone owns their work fully.
Defined career ladders or structured onboarding. The company is too early for that.
Work that is fully scoped before you start. If thats what you need this isnt the right fit.
Compensation
Salary: 70000 to 110000 depending on experience
Equity: Meaningful founding-team equity (vesting terms to be discussed)
Relocation support: Available if needed
A Note on Inclusion
This company works in defence a sector that has historically been less diverse than it should be. They are not looking for a particular background gender nationality or military pedigree. What they need is someone who can ship software in difficult conditions communicate clearly under pressure and operate with autonomy. If thats you regardless of your path to this point this role is genuinely open to you.