Senior Backend Engineer (AI-Native)
Posted:
About the Role
We’re looking for an experienced Back-End / Full-Stack Engineer to design, build, and scale the core services that power Umba’s digital banking platform.
You’ll work primarily in Python (Flask, FastAPI), building secure, high-performance APIs used by tens of thousands of customers across Africa — while also contributing across the stack where needed.
This is not a traditional engineering role.
We operate in an AI-native development environment, where engineers leverage tools like Claude Code, Codex, and other LLM-based systems to accelerate development, generate code, and iterate quickly.
As a result, the role increasingly focuses on:
- Defining clear technical specifications
- Orchestrating AI agents to implement systems
- Reviewing, validating, and hardening generated code
- Building robust feedback loops and quality control systems
You’ll collaborate closely with the Data and Product teams to shape our architecture and ship features quickly and reliably.
This is a highly technical, in-office role based in Nairobi. You’ll join a small, high-performing team operating at speed, where ownership is expected and impact is immediate.
Responsibilities
- Design, build, and maintain scalable backend services using Python (Flask, FastAPI)
- Contribute to front end development (NextJS)
- Contribute across the stack when needed (APIs, integrations)
- Define clear technical specs that can be executed by AI-assisted development workflows
- Use AI tools (e.g. Claude Code, Codex) to accelerate development while maintaining high quality
- Review, test, and validate AI-generated code to ensure correctness, security, and performance
- Architect systems with a focus on reliability, observability, and scalability
- Build strong testing and validation pipelines (unit, integration, automated QA)
- Collaborate with Data teams to deliver end-to-end features
- Debug complex production issues and implement robust fixes
- Continuously improve engineering velocity through tooling and process improvements
Skills and Qualifications
- 5+ years of software engineering experience in production environments
- Strong proficiency in Python and backend frameworks (Flask, FastAPI)
- Intermediate experience with Frontend
- Experience building and scaling APIs and distributed systems
- Comfortable working across the stack (backend + some frontend exposure preferred)
- Strong system design skills and understanding of software architecture principles
AI-Native Engineering Experience (increasingly important):
- Experience using AI coding tools (Claude Code, Codex, GitHub Copilot, etc.) in daily workflows
- Ability to write clear, structured technical specs and prompts for code generation
- Strong code review skills, especially for validating AI-generated outputs
- Understanding of tradeoffs, failure modes, and quality risks in AI-assisted development
- Experience building guardrails: testing, validation, and monitoring for generated code
- Familiarity with modern development workflows (Git, CI/CD, Docker)
- Experience with Linux/Unix environments
Bonus:
- Experience in fintech, lending, or payments systems
- Exposure to data/ML systems or model deployment
- Experience with blockchain or crypto-related systems
What We’re Really Looking For
- Engineers who think in systems, not just functions
- People who can leverage AI to move 10x faster without sacrificing quality
- Builders who take ownership from idea → spec → implementation → production
- Pragmatic problem-solvers who ship
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