Staff Backend Software Engineer

Hopper

Staff Backend Software Engineer developing AI-driven solutions and enhancements for Hopper's travel platform. Collaborating in a low-process environment with senior engineers to define technical roadmap.

Posted 6/30/2026contractRemote • 🇺🇾 UruguayLeadWebsite

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

Scala

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Identify and execute improvements to the codebase that make it easier for both humans and AI agents to move fast and ship safely.
Work with a group of senior engineers in a low-process environment powered by trust and autonomy.
Drive decisions and consensus asynchronously with thoughtful documentation and specs.
Own features end-to-end — from the backend systems to the partner-facing surface.
Architect scalable solutions and foundational patterns that let us efficiently launch new partner experiences.
Work directly with PMs and business partners to define and refine our roadmap.

Requirements

What you’ll need

A natural drive to fearlessly dive into an unknown codebase and deliver results fast.
Strong product thinking – your conception of quality and architecture is anchored in the customer experience, not in technical elegance for its own sake.
The ability to direct AI agents and automated workflows to build and maintain complex systems, and the judgment to know when to step in and when to let them run.
Experience designing the guardrails and feedback loops that keep AI-assisted development productive and reliable.
Experience with, or a mastery-level willingness to learn, distributed system development in Scala.
The ability to articulate not just how you'd solve a problem, but why, and what tradeoffs you're accepting.

Benefits

Comp & perks

This position is offered as an Independent Contractor role (Prestación de Servicios)
The successful candidate will engage with Hopper as an independent service provider
Contractor maintains full responsibility for their own equipment, workspace, and compliance with local Uruguayan tax and social security obligations (DGI/BPS)
This engagement is governed by a commercial service agreement
Does not carry eligibility for company-sponsored benefits, statutory bonuses (Aguinaldo), or paid leave typical of a standard employment contract.

ATS Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

Codebase ImprovementScalable Solution ArchitectureAutomated Workflow ManagementGuardrails DesignFeedback Loop Implementation

Soft Skills

Decision-MakingCollaborationProblem-SolvingCommunication