Backend Python Engineer

Location: London - Hybrid 2x Per Week

Role Type: Contract, £650-800 Per Day, Inside IR35

We are seeking an experienced Senior Python Backend Engineer to build, scale, and maintain the production infrastructure for Generative AI and chatbot applications.

This role is responsible for the live production systems that power our services. The successful candidate will join a collaborative team focused on solving complex technical problems. This position's responsibilities include designing robust backend services, managing cloud infrastructure, and ensuring application reliability at scale.

• Backend Development: Design, build, and maintain scalable backend services and APIs using Python (FastAPI needed).

• System Architecture: Make design decisions for our production systems, focusing on reliability and efficiency.

• Asynchronous Programming: Implement and manage asynchronous workflows and concurrent processes.

• Containerization: Utilize Docker to containerize applications for deployment.

• Cloud Deployment & Operations: Deploy and troubleshoot applications on Google Cloud Platform (GCP). Candidates must be able to diagnose production issues within cloud environments (e.g., Cloud Run, GCS, BigQuery).

• Infrastructure as Code: Develop and manage cloud infrastructure using Terraform.

• Monitoring: Implement and monitor production metrics to ensure system health and identify bottlenecks.

• (Optional) Data & AI Integration: Contribute to data ingestion pipelines and the integration of large language models (LLMs).

• Experience: 5+ years in software development, including experience managing live production systems at scale.

• Python Expertise: Demonstrable expertise in Python backend development (FastAPI, Flask, or Django).

• Containerization: Hands-on experience with Docker and container-based workflows.

• Cloud Proficiency: Proven ability to deploy to a major cloud provider (GCP highly preferred) and diagnose and troubleshoot production issues in that environment.

• Database Skills: High proficiency in SQL.

• Direct production experience with FastAPI.

• Experience with Google Cloud Run and Kubernetes (GKE).

• Familiarity with GCP data tools like BigQuery and Google Cloud Storage (GCS).

• Experience building complex agentic AI applications (beyond basic RAG or LangChain implementations).

Our interview process is designed to identify practical engineering competence and collaborative skills.

• Technical Acumen: The technical assessment is rigorous. We evaluate Python and SQL skills on a pass/fail basis; full competency is required. We will also assess hands-on Docker skills and your understanding of asynchronous programming, concurrency, and software design.

• Communication: Candidates must be able to clearly articulate their technical contributions. We require context on what was done, why it was done, and what the business impact was.

• Teamwork: We are looking for engineers who demonstrate strong collaboration. We will look for competency-based examples of how you approach problem-solving, design, and execution as part of a team.

If you are interested in applying, please email with your CV and number.