About this Staff Cloud Platform Engineer role at HavocAI
About Us:
Havoc is a leader in all-domain collaborative autonomy. Its software-defined hardware approach powers military and commercial-grade autonomous systems across sea, air, and land to sense, decide, and act together in complex and contested environments. Havoc connects assets, enabling them to share information, adapt in real time, and continue operating even when communications are disrupted or denied. Havoc optimizes mission performance and minimizes human risk.
Havoc was founded in 2024 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. Learn more at Havoc: All-Domain Collaborative Autonomy .
About the Role
We are seeking a Staff Cloud Platform Engineer to drive the design and operation of the cloud platform that powers our autonomous systems.
In this role, you will be a hands-on staff-level individual contributor, owning the design of secure, reliable, and cost-effective cloud infrastructure while helping set the technical direction for how we provision, deploy, and operate services.
You will work closely with backend, SRE, data, autonomy, and security teams to deliver platform capabilities that support mission-critical workloads in real-world environments.
This role is ideal for someone who combines deep cloud and infrastructure expertise with strong technical judgment, thrives in fast-paced, high-ownership environments, and is energized by complex and ambiguous platform challenges.
Key Responsibilities
Technical Ownership
Drive execution and technical excellence across cloud platform projects
Set infrastructure standards, conduct design and code reviews, and guide architectural decisions
Shape the cloud platform roadmap in partnership with product and engineering leadership
Foster a culture of ownership, quality, automation, and continuous improvement
Cloud Platform Architecture & Development
Design, build, and operate scalable AWS infrastructure using Infrastructure as Code
Build and maintain Kubernetes-based platforms, including EKS, and container workflows for application teams
Build self-service tooling and paved paths that enable teams to deploy and operate services safely
Ensure the platform reliably supports both application and data workloads
Design platform capabilities with reliability, scalability, security, and cost efficiency in mind
System Performance, Reliability & Cost
Optimize cloud systems for performance, scalability, resilience, and cost efficiency
Identify and resolve infrastructure bottlenecks, scaling limits, and reliability risks
Establish reliability practices, including SLIs, SLOs, error budgets, and incident response
Improve observability, maintainability, and operational readiness across cloud platform services
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Partner with backend, SRE, data, autonomy, and security teams to deliver platform capabilities across the stack
Support end-to-end system design from edge devices to cloud infrastructure
Coordinate across teams to build and maintain release processes and CI/CD pipelines
Help align platform capabilities with product, engineering, security, and mission needs
Security & Best Practices
Enforce secure cloud practices, including IAM least privilege, secrets management, and network segmentation
Maintain high standards for automation, testing, observability, documentation, and infrastructure reliability
Support technical reviews, design discussions, and production readiness efforts
Build systems with security, scalability, and long-term maintainability in mind
Qualifications
10+ years of experience in cloud platform, infrastructure, DevOps, or related engineering roles
Deep expertise with AWS core services, including compute, networking, storage, IAM, and managed data services
Strong experience with Infrastructure as Code
Hands-on experience operating Kubernetes, including EKS, and containerized environments
Strong experience building CI/CD pipelines and deployment automation
Proficiency in Go, Python, or similar languages for platform tooling and automation
Solid understanding of cloud networking, security, and distributed systems fundamentals
Ability to drive projects from concept through production
Strong technical judgment and ability to operate independently in fast-moving environments
Strong written and verbal communication skills
U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance if required
Preferred Skills
Experience supporting autonomy, robotics, simulation, real-time systems, or mission-critical platforms
Experience designing multi-account AWS organizations and landing zones
Familiarity with observability tooling at scale, including metrics, logging, and tracing
Knowledge of AWS GovCloud or compliance-driven environments, including FedRAMP, IL4, or IL5
Experience with platform engineering, developer experience, self-service infrastructure, or paved-path tooling
Experience working in small, fast-moving engineering teams or high-growth technology companies
Active or prior security clearance
What Success Looks Like
Within 12 months, success in this role looks like consistent delivery of secure, scalable, and reliable cloud platform capabilities that support real-world deployments. You will have helped establish self-service infrastructure, mature CI/CD practices, clear infrastructure standards, and well-defined platform boundaries.
You will also have built strong alignment across backend, SRE, data, autonomy, security, and product teams while helping ensure HavocAI’s cloud platform is ready to support mission-critical autonomous operations.
Benefits:
100% Employer paid Health, Dental and Vision Insurance for you and your families
Life Insurance (Employer Paid)
Ability to participate in the companies 401k program (Matching)
Unlimited PTO policy with an enforced 2 week minimum
Equity Package
Work / Home Office Stipend
Global Entry
16 Week Paid Parental Leave
Monthly Health and Wellness Stipend
Our Values:
Innovation: We are driven to break new ground. Every day presents an opportunity to challenge the status quo, think boldly, and deliver advanced solutions that transform the future of defense technology.
Integrity: We hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards, ensuring transparency, accountability, and trust in all our actions and partnerships.
Mission-Driven: We are focused on achieving impactful outcomes that align with our core mission—protecting lives through innovation.
Forward-Leaning: We continuously seek out new opportunities and remain at the forefront of technological advancements. We embrace change and anticipate the challenges of tomorrow with confidence and creativity.
Ownership of All Tasks: At HavocAI, no problem is too complex or too trivial. We believe that greatness comes from tackling the hardest challenges, but also in handling the smallest, sometimes thankless, tasks with the same level of commitment and care.
Servant Leadership: We lead by serving others, whether it’s supporting our employees, partners, or the broader community. Empowering those around us is key to achieving long-term success and making a lasting impact.
HavocAI is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to creating an inclusive and diverse workplace. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.