Software Engineer, Backend & Data
Vital Lyfe
About the role
About Vital Lyfe
Vital Lyfe is a tech company redefining water autonomy through innovation, creating a new category of personal water making technology built to scale where infrastructure can’t.
The Mission
We’re looking for a Software Engineer to help build the software behind a high-demand consumer hardware product. We’re spinning up manufacturing from scratch, scaling fast, and the software you work on will directly affect how we build, track, and deliver thousands of units.
This is the first full-time hire on our software team. You’ll work directly with our Head of Software, take ownership of a substantial area of our backend and data systems, and contribute across the tools and infrastructure that power our operations and help us scale.
What You’ll Do
Build and maintain data pipelines that bring test and production data off the manufacturing line, validate and store it, and turn it into views our teams use to track yield and failures
Build, extend, and maintain backend services and system integrations on our established cloud platform, keeping data reliable across the company
Own what you build end to end: design, test, ship, debug, and keep it running in production
Help shape design and implementation decisions that advance our technical roadmap
Build and improve internal tools that give our engineering and operations teams real-time visibility into production and manufacturing workflows
Contribute across the rest of our software, including our manufacturing execution system (MES) and the handheld app our floor teams use
Our stack includes TypeScript, Python, React, and AWS.
What We’re Looking For
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related field, or equivalent experience
2 to 4 years building software professionally
Experience building and maintaining backend services or APIs in production
Strong programming fundamentals and comfort learning new systems quickly
Deep experience with at least one modern language, such as Python or TypeScript
Working knowledge of SQL and structured data
Comfortable in a codebase you didn’t write, and able to debug problems on your own
Practical and curious, with a habit of taking ownership and following through
Able to break down a problem, work through it, and know when to ask for help
Excited to work where software and hardware intersect
Preferred Qualifications
Experience building data pipelines, including validating and cleaning messy real-world data
Background in building user-facing interfaces with React or a similar frontend framework
Experience with dashboards or data visualization tools
Experience with AWS, especially serverless and infrastructure as code
Experience with ERP, MES, or other manufacturing systems
Interest in manufacturing, hardware-software integration, or IoT systems
Why Join Vital Lyfe?
Be the first full-time hire on a new software team, with a hand in shaping how the team works
Work on high-impact problems with global relevance
Help scale breakthrough technology in water security and climate resilience
Early ownership in a high growth, engineering led startup
Join a tight knit, mission driven team in a fast-paced environment
Build long term career equity as we grow
Location Requirement: Ability to work 100% onsite in Torrance, CA (remote or hybrid work will not be considered)
Vital Lyfe is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vital Lyfe is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.
Responsibilities
- Build and maintain pipelines that validate, store, and surface manufacturing test and production data.
- Develop and maintain backend services and integrations on the company's cloud platform.
- Own software end to end, from design and testing through deployment, debugging, and production support.
- Build internal tools that give engineering and operations teams visibility into manufacturing workflows.
- Contribute to the manufacturing execution system and handheld app used by floor teams.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field, or equivalent experience.
- Two to four years of professional software development experience.
- Experience building and maintaining production backend services or APIs.
- Strong programming fundamentals and deep experience with Python, TypeScript, or another modern language.
- Working knowledge of SQL and structured data.
- Ability to learn unfamiliar systems, debug independently, and take ownership of work.
- Preferred: experience with data pipelines, React, dashboards, AWS, serverless systems, infrastructure as code, ERP, or MES.
- Interest in manufacturing, hardware-software integration, or IoT.
Benefits
- Early ownership and influence in shaping a new software team.
- Opportunity to build long-term career equity as the company grows.
- Work on technology related to water security and climate resilience.
- Close-knit, mission-driven team.
Skills mentioned
About Vital Lyfe
Vital Lyfe is a tech company redefining water autonomy through innovation — creating a new category of personal water-making technology built to scale where infrastructure can’t. Water is the last essential resource still tied to fixed infrastructure. When grids fail or logistics stall, people wait. The world is shifting toward independence in energy, mobility, and communication — water must follow. Vital Lyfe closes that gap. Our systems turn naturally occurring water — from coastlines, rivers, lakes, or existing tap-quality sources — into purified water on demand. Portable. Intuitive. Reliable. This is universal water-making without dependency. Without logistics. Without limits.