Senior Backend Engineer (B2B SaaS Startup)

Join us in reshaping global trade in a fast-growing startup!

We are traide AI – a VC-backed, B2B deep tech startup based in Berlin, using AI to solve one of the most overlooked yet critical challenges in international trade: customs compliance. Our software automates product classification, reduces regulatory errors, and helps customers save up to 83% of their time.

Trusted by leading brands like Siemens Healthineers, Koro, and Jack Wolfskin, we've achieved 2x growth over the past 12 months – and we're just getting started.

At traide AI, we believe customs specialists deserve smarter, faster workflows and the future of global trade depends on it. As a Senior Backend Engineer, you'll play a pivotal role in builing robust, AI-powered backend services and infrastructure that drives the value creation for our customers. Your main expertise lies in backend technology but you should not be afraid to contribute to other parts of the application.

You'll join a tight-knit, VC-backed B2B startup - calm but ambitious - where your ideas shape both product and culture.

Product Development

• Own the end-to-end delivery of new features and improvements in our web application across the whole stack: shaping everything from technical design to production release
• Write both client-side and server-side code within our well-established codebases
• Analyse and communicate trade-offs in technical designs in RFC style discussions, drive decisions for your projects
• Be the backend expert in rotating project teams, give feedback on the contribution of other team members within your area of expertise

Cross-functional collaboration

• Work alongside designers to shape user flows, evaluate feasibility, and improve interfaces and user experience
• Partner with AI engineers to bring cutting-edge research and prototypes into production-ready features
• Contribute your perspective to product discussions, helping set direction with both technical and user impact in mind

• Set and uphold high standards for code quality, architecture, and best practices within the team

• Design and maintain robust automated tests to ensure reliability and quality at scale

• Develop and improve instructions, guardrails and feedback mechanisms for coding agents

• Select and configure tooling that improves developer experience and keeps our CI/CD pipeline efficient

• Proactively identify and solve technical challenges before they become blockers

Knowledge sharing

• Share your expertise through code reviews, mentoring, and documentation — helping others level up and ensuring our knowledge grows as the team grows

You're an experienced engineer who cares deeply about craft, but even more about impact. You love clear thinking over hype, and you're energized by the idea of turning AI research into products people actually use every day.

• 7+ years of hands-on software engineering experience, ideally building complex products in dynamic environments
• Bachelor's degree (or higher) in Computer Science or a related discipline
• Deep proficiency in TypeScript, including advanced type-level programming
• Familiarity with synchronous and asynchronous communication patterns, HTTP APIs (REST and GraphQL), event-driven architecture, and common design patterns.
• Solid database skills across both relational and non-relational databases such as Postgres and Redis or similar.
• Hands-on experience with cloud platforms such as Google Cloud, and the services that typically come with them.
• You embrace AI tools in your workflow and are driven to master emerging technologies
• You champion code quality and drive best practices across the team
• You thrive in fast-moving environments - seeking opportunities to learn, grow, and both give and receive feedback
• Strong English skills (C1 or better); German is a plus but not required
• Curiosity about adjacent fields like DevOps, Security, Frontend development, AI Engineering etc.

• React & Chakra UI (Component library)
• GraphQL
• Node.js & Prisma (ORM)
• Python & FastAPI & SQLAlchemy
• Postgres for storage & Redis for caching & messages
• Terraform / Open Tofu orchestrating Google Cloud Platform

• Varied day-to-day: Every feature comes with unique technical challenges → no two days are the same
• Visible impact: You'll see the direct results of your work → for both our customers and traide AI
• Direct impact on product: Your technical decisions shape what we ship and how it performs
• Team culture: You'll be part of a team that communicates transparently, values humor, and supports each other with respect and sincerity
• Flexible working: We enjoy working together in our office at Senefelder Platz in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg/Mitte. Home office is also an option for two days per week
• Be part of our regular team events (boot trips, bowling etc.)
• Enjoy benefits like an Urban Sports Club membership