Senior Software Engineer, Distributed Systems

Job Description Founded by Jump Trading alums, Monad Labs is a tech startup using low-latency programming, compiler optimization, and multithreaded computing to build an ultra-high-performance smart contract platform. The work entails building an optimal stack-based VM that supports multithreaded computation, as well as developing and implementing an efficient Byzantine Fault Tolerant (BFT) algorithm enabling a network of nodes to come to consensus. We are a team of systems engineers and community builders who are on a mission to help crypto eat the world. After recently raising $225M in series A funding, led by Paradigm, we are growing our team. The Role We are hiring a Senior Software Engineer to research, design, and build core improvements to the blockchain protocol. Your work will involve distributed algorithms, cryptography, and consensus mechanisms. You will draw on previous experience in distributed systems or blockchain engineering, and will work as a vital member of a small, high-performing team. What you'll do You’ll research, design, and build core improvements to the consensus mechanism, gossip protocol, state synchronization algorithm, leader election protocol, etc. You’ll devise experiments to test worst‑case scenarios, and iterate on your design based on the results. You’ll design components while taking into account the behavior of other blockchain systems such as rollups, bridges, or staking systems. You’ll build performant system components from scratch in Rust. Who you are You have at least 5 years of software engineering experience in Rust, C++, or C. You have significant experience building performant systems from scratch, such as databases, device drivers, or embedded systems. You have excellent instincts for software architecture, memory management, and performance optimization/profiling tools. You have a bachelor's in Computer Science or equivalent. You value communication and collaboration. Why work with us Challenging problems. You’ll work on extremely challenging problems with massive impact. Huge opportunity. The Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) standard is ubiquitous, but existing EVM-compatible chains are very slow. Monad’s core innovations offer developers the best of both worlds (portability and performance) and are a game-changer for mass user adoption in crypto. The right team. You’ll be part of a small, exceptional team (bios here). Culture. We’re a lean team working together to achieve very ambitious goals. We are united in our culture of collaboration, low egos, and high-quality outputs. As an early member of our team, you’ll help continue to shape our culture. Compensation. You’ll receive a competitive salary and equity package. Resources and growth. We’re well-capitalized, with backing from leading venture funds like Paradigm, Electric Capital, Greenoaks, Dragonfly, and Coinbase Ventures. We keep a lean team, and this is a rare opportunity to join. You’ll learn a lot and grow as our company scales. Salary and benefits Minimum full‑time salary of $200,000. (This is not a guarantee of compensation or salary; a final offer amount may vary based on factors including but not limited to experience, domain expertise, and geographic location.) Monad Labs’ benefits for US‑based full‑time employees include medical, dental, and vision insurance (100% coverage for employees); unlimited and encouraged paid time off; monthly mental health and fitness stipend; paid parental leave; and 10 company‑observed holidays. #J-18808-Ljbffr