Software Engineer, Cryptography

Engineering – Cryptography /
Remote
Espresso Systems is the lead developer of Espresso: the coordination layer for cross-chain transactions and interactions. We are building a network and marketplace that enables chains to interoperate seamlessly, without sacrificing scale or sovereignty. Chains that are fueled by Espresso create better experiences for their users and capture more value for their ecosystems.

At Espresso, we work with leading projects developing chains, rollups, and applications including Offchain Labs, Polygon, Cartesi, RARI Chain, and beyond. We support these teams in offering users an open, interoperable experience through a pragmatic and diligent approach to infrastructure design and by harnessing the power of free and fair markets.

Contributors to Espresso comprise a diverse and passionate team located around the world. We are developers, designers, and researchers who have contributed in academia, in open source communities, in policymaking, and beyond. We are backed by over $50m in funding from leading investors in technology and crypto including a16z, Greylock Partners, Electric Capital, Sequoia Capital, and Polychain Capital.

As a cryptography software engineer, you will closely collaborate with fellow engineers and researchers to build cryptographic tools and libraries to bring Espresso's scalability infrastructure to the Ethereum ecosystem. Examples of work include implementing the verifiable information dispersal (VID) scheme, a crucial primitive for supporting a more scalable and decentralized data availability service layer; and implementing cryptographic circuits for verifying the Espresso Sequencer’s state efficiently on smart contracts. Along the road, you will also help maintain Jellyfish, a top open-source implementation of various advanced crypto primitives.

Responsibilities

    • Implement, test, and deploy/integrate cryptographic protocols and libraries to Espresso Sequencer products
    • Work with external auditors to evaluate security and safety of implementations
    • Take engineering projects from concept and design to production, while working with engineering leaders and the product team to create sound and realistic roadmaps

Requirements

    • Deep understanding of applied cryptography
    • 3+ years of professional software engineering experience or equivalent cryptography development experience
    • Understanding of software engineering and security best practices, in particular security of cryptographic implementations
    • Experience shipping and taking engineering projects to production

Preferred

    • PhD in Computer Science with focus on cryptography
    • Professional experience with Rust and Solidity
    • Experience working on blockchain infrastructure, e.g. a layer-1 blockchain
    • Enthusiasm for the rapidly developing blockchain ecosystem

Benefits

    • Fully remote with flexible hours
    • Work alongside the brightest minds in the crypto space
    • Competitive salary + equity package
    • Regular team off-sites to international locations
    • Unlimited vacation policy
    • Top-tier health, dental, and vision coverage for US employees