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Rigetti Computing is a pioneer in full-stack quantum computing systems, operating quantum computers over the cloud since 2017 and serving enterprise, government, and research clients globally. The company designs and manufactures quantum chips in-house at Fab-1, the industry's first dedicated quantum device manufacturing facility.
The Internal Software (ISW) team enables Rigetti's physicists and fabrication engineers to build better quantum hardware. The team owns software spanning the measurement and characterization platform quantum engineers rely on daily, design and layout tooling for the in-house chip fabrication facility, cloud and on-site infrastructure, and analytic environments. The team also supports external customers through cloud services and on-site deployments.
As a Senior Software Engineer on ISW, you will own, maintain, and improve data-intensive Python services and applications, working mostly on backend systems and sometimes full-stack. You'll work directly with internal customers—quantum engineers and fab engineers—to understand their needs and translate them into scalable, sustainable software. Key responsibilities include keeping data trustworthy as systems evolve through schema migrations, compatibility management, testing, and CI/CD; measuring and improving performance of user-facing workflows and platform observability; helping scientists and engineers use AI coding agents safely by building frameworks and guardrails; keeping users informed on priorities and roadmap; and mentoring and collaborating with other engineers on the team.
The ISW team is small and senior, enjoying hard problems and working alongside deeply knowledgeable colleagues. The work is a mix of strengthening experimental Python systems scientists depend on and building new ones as the science advances. Because ISW touches much of the company, there is real room to grow—either going deeper in an area you care about or taking on something new as Rigetti evolves. This is a rare opportunity to do serious software engineering close to the hardware itself: the code you write shapes how quantum chips are designed, built, and measured.
Rigetti was founded in 2013 and today employs more than 150 people with offices in the United States, U.K., and Australia.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Strong Python with experience building and running production backend or serving systems
- Experience working in large, evolving codebases and judgment to improve them without slowing dependent teams
- Working knowledge of SQL and relational databases; PostgreSQL a plus
- Experience with AWS and a typical cloud stack (Kubernetes, Kafka, Postgres, Grafana or equivalents)
- Track record of working cross-functionally with scientists or other deeply technical peers, with genuine enjoyment of helping them do their best work as requirements change
- Product instinct and independence: ability to sit with a user, understand the underlying problem, define what to build, and drive it forward without close supervision
- Curiosity regarding quantum computing and what Rigetti is building
NICE TO HAVE:
- Scientific computing, data-science, or AI/ML tooling backgrounds
- HPC, national lab, semiconductor, or other hardware-forward R&D environments
- DevOps, SRE, or cloud engineering
- Frontend or data visualization experience, including building tools that help scientists explore and understand data
- Physics, math, or quantum background of any depth
