Location: Remote - US

Remote | Full time

Compensation: Competitive

We are hiring on behalf of our client who is a fast-growing software company dedicated to supporting and evolving a leading open-source, proof-of-stake distributed ledger platform. Their network is EVM-compatible and specifically engineered to meet the demands of enterprise and Web3 applications that require industry-leading speed, security, and sustainability. They are looking for a Principle EVM Engineer with deep blockchain protocol experience to join their Smart Contracts Team. In this role, you will be a key contributor to the evolution and optimization of their EVM implementation. You will work on a "plain Java" codebase (no heavy frameworks) where high performance, low latency, and high throughput are the baseline requirements.

Key Responsibilities:

• Collaborate daily on the design and implementation of core blockchain features.
• Innovate on transaction processing, execution algorithms, and EVM opcodes.
• Bridge the gap between the Ethereum roadmap and their native network innovations.
• Contribute to open-source clients focusing on VM state transitions and performance improvements.
• Implement community-requested improvement proposals (HIPs).
• Test and validate the EVM using both Ethereum community tools and native consensus node testing suites.
• Focus on Craft: Spend approximately 80% of your time designing, coding, and testing.

Requirements

• Education: Master’s degree in Computer Science (or similar field) or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience: 10+ years of software development experience, with at least 4+ years specifically in blockchain protocol development.
• Java Mastery: Expert-level proficiency in the Java language and VM. You should be comfortable working in a "plain vanilla" Java environment without the crutch of libraries or frameworks.
• EVM Expertise: Deep architectural knowledge of EVM-based blockchains and experience writing/debugging smart contracts.
• Leadership: Experience in a Tech Lead or Team Lead capacity, with a proven ability to mentor and guide engineers up to the Staff level.
• Computer Science Fundamentals: A rigorous grasp of concurrency, performance optimization, and high-performance architectural design patterns.
• Quality Focus: Strong adherence to test-driven development (TDD), CI/CD processes, and cryptographic security principles.

Bonus Points:

• Hands-on experience with Hyperledger Besu.
• Expertise with compilers, parsers, interpreters, or Garbage Collector (GC) tuning (Hotspot/GraalVM).
• Experience with Protobuf and compile-time dependency injection (e.g., Dagger).
• Familiarity with Web3 tooling (JavaScript/TypeScript) and data-flow analysis.

Benefits

• Competitive Compensation: High-growth salary structure.
• Equity & Tokens: Direct stake in the ecosystem’s success through equity and token grants.
• Performance Bonuses: Annual bonuses based on impact and delivery.
• Comprehensive Health: Full health insurance and 401k matching (for US-based employees).
• Innovation-First Culture: Work on a decentralized platform governed by world-leading organizations across 11 different sectors.

What to Expect: The Interview Process

1. Initial Screen: A conversation with the recruitment team to discuss your background.
2. Technical Deep Dive: A rigorous interview with the Engineering team focusing on high-level architecture, Java internals, and system optimization (e.g., managing massive database growth or optimizing high-traffic servers).
3. The "Bar Raiser": A four-interview block including live coding and deep technical theory.
4. Leadership Final: A final conversation with the VP of Engineering.



Note to Candidates: The client takes Java performance seriously. Be prepared to discuss "under the hood" concepts—from the differences between data structures to how you would optimize a non-shardable database with 1 billion+ rows.