Senior Software Engineer (Zig/Rust)
Software Development
WFA Digital Insight
Syndica is tackling one of the toughest challenges in the Solana ecosystem: a next‑generation validator client written in Zig. The senior engineer will not only translate an existing Rust codebase but also shape performance‑critical components from the ground up, meaning every line of code directly influences network stability. What sets this role apart is the blend of systems‑level Rust expertise with an emerging language (Zig) that promises tighter control over memory and SIMD operations. Candidates will join a tightly knit open‑source team backed by heavyweight investors, giving them both technical depth and visibility in the Web3 infrastructure space. Expect hands‑on ownership, rapid iteration, and a clear path to becoming a core maintainer within months.
Job Description
About us
Syndica supplies the most critical applications in Web3 with enterprise-grade RPC infrastructure and developer tools tailored for the Solana ecosystem. Joining our team means you'll be held to a high standard, technically challenged, and grow close to a group of individuals passionate about building new infrastructure technologies. We are backed by strategic partners, investors, and advisors who are all-in on our mission: Chamath Palihapitiya of Social Capital, Steve Jang of Kindred Ventures, Joe McCann of Asymmetric, Jump Crypto, Coinbase Ventures, Solana Ventures, Circle Ventures, and many more. ABOUT YOU: - You are a talented engineer who thrives in a collaborative and fast-paced environment.- You're excited about contributing to the decentralization of blockchain ecosystems.
- You have 3+ years of related professional experience using Rust (experience in memory-managed languages (Zig/C/C++) is nice to have but not required).
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or relevant experience.
About the Role
As a Senior Engineer, you will play a pivotal role in designing and implementing a high-performance Solana validator client from scratch. The team you’d be joining is building a new open-source Solana validator client, Sig, using the Zig programming language. You can find more technical details about the project in the original announcement here https://blog.syndica.io/introducing-sig-by-syndica-an-rps-focused-solana-validator-client-written-in-zig/. The role’s primary responsibility will involve understanding the Agave validator implementation codebase, written in Rust, and translating, optimizing, and improving the implementation in Zig (take a peek at the current work here https://github.com/syndica/sig/!).Key Responsibilities
- Understanding and Communicating Rust Code: mapping and accurately communicating how the existing Rust client works.
- Writing high-quality code in Zig: translating the Rust code into Zig while maintaining high-quality code, including performance and readability.
- Performance Research: iteratively analyzing and optimizing software bottlenecks in Zig while leveraging high-performance tools such as SIMD operations to achieve performance requirements.
- Code Ownership: lead the implementation, benchmarking, and testing of your validator components from start to finish.
- Collaboration: leveraging strong communication skills to break down complex ideas into simple terms and demonstrating a knack for collaboration across a large group of engineers.
- In three months, you have become one of our core Zig developers. You’ll have taken on independent code review responsibilities and are collaborating on the design of new features.
- In six months, you have earned the trust of the team and are delivering tasks through the entire SDLC, from design through development with minimal guidance, and are helping to effectively mentor new engineers joining the team.
- In twelve months, you have established a cadence of predictable, on-time delivery without cutting corners.
How to Stand Out
- Showcase any Rust or Zig projects on GitHub; a pull request to the Sig repo demonstrates immediate interest.
- Prepare concrete examples of performance optimizations you’ve implemented, including tools used and measurable impact.
- Practice explaining low‑level concepts (memory layout, SIMD) in plain language; interviewers will test communication clarity.
- Bring a short demo of a validator‑related experiment or benchmark to the interview to prove hands‑on expertise.
- Research Solana’s consensus mechanism beforehand; understanding validator roles will set you apart.
- Negotiate equity by asking about token allocations or vesting schedules typical for blockchain startups.
- Watch for vague promises about “unlimited” benefits without clear policy; request specifics on health coverage and PTO.
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