About Zipline

Do you want to change the world? Zipline is on a mission to transform the way goods move. Our aim is to solve the world’s most urgent and complex access challenges by building, manufacturing and operating the first instant delivery and logistics system that serves all humans equally, wherever they are. From powering Rwanda’s national blood delivery network and Ghana’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution, to providing on-demand home delivery for Walmart, to enabling healthcare providers to bring care directly to U.S. homes, we are transforming the way things move for businesses, governments and consumers. The technology is complex but the idea is simple: a teleportation service that delivers what you need, when you need it. Through our technology that includes robotics and autonomy, we are decarbonizing delivery, decreasing road congestion, and reducing fossil fuel consumption and air pollution, while providing equitable access to billions of people and building a more resilient global supply chain.

Join Zipline and help us to make good on our promise to build an equitable and more resilient global supply chain for billions of people.

About You and The Role

Zipline’s Nest Applications Software team builds and manages the fulfillment, maintenance and flight systems that power our operations in Africa. We are responsible for the software that manages medical inventory, order processing, and flight coordination for automated delivery at scale. Our work spans internal platforms that streamline supply chain, and financial workflows, as well as external-facing applications that allow customers to place and track orders. By connecting every corner of the business through software, we ensure Zipline can operate efficiently, intelligently, and globally.

What You'll Do

• Deep dive into your users’ problems to simplify operational workflows which enable the business to move efficiently

• Architect simple, modular, flexible software systems that evolve with fast changing business needs.

• Lead backend and frontend development of major projects across all aspects of a modern tech stack.

• Establish strong automated testing practices across unit, integration, and system layers.

• Improve reliability, observability, and operational robustness of production systems.

• Systematize AI-assisted workflows across development, testing, and operations.

• Maintain clear engineering patterns, code quality standards, and review discipline.

• Mentor junior engineers through direct coaching, pairing, and design reviews.

• Increase team throughput by reducing friction, simplifying architecture, and eliminating waste.

What You'll Bring

• 8+ years building and operating production-grade distributed systems.

• Deep experience developing full stack software using Python, Go, or a similar object-oriented language.

• Frontend experience using React or similar Javascript frameworks.

• Experience architecting distributed and event-driven systems using Kafka or similar technologies.

• Database modeling and performance tuning experience with Postgres.

• Demonstrated history of designing systems that are simple, flexible, and resilient.

• Proven implementation of comprehensive automated testing strategies.

• Experience driving architectural decisions in fast-changing environments.

• Track record of mentoring and growing junior engineers.

Nice to Haves

• Experience building modern fulfillment, logistics, or warehouse systems.

• Willingness to spend significant time in Kigali, Rwanda, via travel or relocation.

• Production experience with Kubernetes and AWS.

What Else You Need to Know

The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation; overtime pay; discretionary annual or performance bonuses; sales incentives; benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance; paid time off; and more.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion or religious creed, mental or physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, military or veteran status, citizenship, or other characteristics protected by state, federal or local law or our other policies.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!