Role: Forward Deployed Backend/DevOps Engineer
Location: Portugal (Lisbon)
Reports to: VP, Forward Deployed Engineering
Working type: Hybrid (On-site at customer locations approx. 50% of time)
Must be eligible and able to attain relevant national and NATO security clearances.
Must be based in-country and native level speaker of the country you're deploying to.
In this role, you are the backend and infrastructure backbone defence and intelligence customers rely on. You deploy ICEYE's intelligence platform into secure (often air-gapped) environments and design the high-performance backend systems that move satellite data at scale — fast APIs, resilient services, tuned databases, automated infrastructure. Our stack: Python and Go services on Kubernetes, PostgreSQL and MongoDB, Terraform and Ansible, CI/CD pipelines that also run offline, cloud (AWS) and on-premises air-gapped clusters, with AI-assisted development as the default.
This is a ship-daily role: systems you build run mission-critical workloads analysts use to protect nations.
Platform deployment & operations
Deploy ICEYE's intelligence platform into customer secure environments (on-premise, air-gapped networks, classified data centres).
Install, upgrade and operate Kubernetes clusters and containerised applications (Docker) in customer environments — cloud and on-premises.
Build infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, Ansible) and CI/CD pipelines that work without external internet access, including offline registries and artifact mirroring.
Troubleshoot deployment and production issues in disconnected environments, from the application layer down to storage and networking.
High-performance backend systems
Design and build APIs, services and data pipelines that handle large volumes of SAR imagery and intelligence data with low latency.
Connect ICEYE systems to customer C4ISR infrastructure and intelligence tools through robust, well-designed integrations.
Own database design and performance at production scale (PostgreSQL, MongoDB): schemas, indexing, tuning, replication and backup.
Apply caching, queueing and horizontal scaling patterns deliberately — and capacity-plan for fixed on-premises hardware where you cannot simply scale out.
Reliability, security & observability
Build monitoring, logging and alerting that work in restricted environments, so problems are found before the customer finds them.
Harden deployments to meet customer security constraints; own backup, recovery and upgrade paths for systems that cannot go down.
Run the infrastructure behind AI workloads shipped by the team — model serving, vector databases, GPU nodes — reliably and repeatably.
Customer engagement & rapid delivery
Work embedded with intelligence analysts, operators and customer IT teams to understand operational and infrastructure requirements.
Rapidly prototype and iterate (working systems first, polish later) to address immediate operational needs.
Conduct hands-on training for customer administrators on platform operations.
Feed deployment experience back to ICEYE's product and engineering teams as concrete technical requirements.
Must-haves
5+ years hands-on backend engineering building and operating production systems at scale.
Strong programming skills in Python. You write typed, tested services and you are comfortable with async APIs. TypeScript is a plus.
Proven experience designing high-performance backend systems: APIs, distributed services, messaging, caching and databases under real load. Experience with spatial, search, or vector workloads in Postgres is a plus.
Production experience in both cloud (e.g., AWS) and on-premises environments — this role lives in both.
Deep Docker and Kubernetes: deploy, debug, and upgrade clusters — not only consume them. GitOps and infrastructure-as-code experience. Pipelines that can run offline or on an isolated network are a plus.
Observability as a habit: metrics, logs, and alerts are part of done.
Infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, Ansible) and CI/CD experience, ideally including pipelines that run offline or in isolated networks.
PostgreSQL and/or MongoDB at production scale: schema design, tuning, replication, backup and recovery.
Observability as a habit: metrics, logging and alerting are part of done, not an afterthought.
Builder mindset: ship fast, iterate with feedback, and prioritise working solutions over perfect architecture.
Strong communication and customer engagement, able to work embedded with intelligence analysts / military operators.
Strong spoken and written English, able to explain technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
Willingness to travel 40–60% to customer sites within the region.
Nice to have
Experience in defence, intelligence, or government operational environments.
Deploying to on-prem data centres and/or air-gapped networks, including offline artifact and registry management.
Event streaming and high-throughput data systems (e.g., Kafka or similar) at production scale.
Deeper Kubernetes: operators, service mesh, multi-cluster, storage and networking internals.
Security hardening and accreditation experience (system hardening baselines, audit and compliance in classified environments).
Familiarity with geospatial data, satellite imagery, or remote sensing.
Experience running infrastructure for AI/LLM workloads: GPU scheduling, model serving, vector databases.
Active use of AI-assisted development tools as part of your daily workflow.
Experience in defence tech (e.g., Palantir, Anduril, Scale AI, similar startups).
At ICEYE, you’ll join a diverse and highly engaged team united by the ambition to make the impossible possible. As a global scale-up, we combine speed and ambition with the opportunity to take real ownership from day one. Your growth, wellbeing, and success are a priority, with continuous professional development, training opportunities, and a culture where collaboration is how we win.
How We Work (Our Values)Make the impossible possible: We set ambitious goals and stay calm under pressure. We bring grit, optimism, and ownership when things get hard, and we keep moving until we find a way.
Be curious: Go deep, ask questions, listen carefully, and think critically. Understand the “why” behind decisions.
See the big picture: Stay close to what’s happening across the company so you can make better decisions. Consider how your work affects others.
Drive effective teamwork: Create psychological safety, invite different perspectives, and build inclusive teams. There are no bad questions.
Act as one team: We win together. We match tasks to the right owner and stay agile as priorities shift.
Have fun: What we do matters—and it should be enjoyable. Celebrate progress, take pride in results, and share the wins.
Our benefits are designed to support your health and wellbeing—at work and beyond. We keep improving them based on employee feedback, and offerings vary by location. Talent Acquisition will confirm what applies for this role and location during the process.
We want ICEYE to be a place where people can be themselves and do great work. Different backgrounds and perspectives make us stronger, which is why we work to create an environment where people feel included, respected, and able to speak up. Whatever your background, we want you to bring your authentic self to the table.
We’re committed to fair, inclusive hiring and equal opportunity. Everyone is welcome to apply. If you need any adjustments or support during the recruitment process, tell us—we’ll do our best to help.
Apply now to start your ICEYE journey, and help us continue to make the impossible possible together. Read more about ICEYE and working with us at iceye.com
United Kingdom