Research Engineer

About the Role

As a Research Engineer at Flashbots, you will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of cutting-edge products that shape the future of MEV technology. We are looking for a highly skilled and motivated individual who can collaborate effectively with internal and external researchers and bring innovative research ideas to production.

Responsibilities

In addition to the outline above, as the Research Engineer you will:

• Study, invent, and build cutting-edge prototypes or products
• Identify and tackle short- and long-term research challenges that are critical to SUAVE’s success, such as designing solutions with cryptography or cryptoeconomic commitments
• Collaborate alongside engineering and product teams to translate research ideas into production-ready solutions
• Work closely with internal and external researchers, fostering collaboration and leveraging their expertise to solve complex problems in the MEV space
• Create design documents, whitepapers, and presentations to communicate ideas and solutions effectively to internal and external collaborators
• Stay up-to-date with the latest advancements in blockchain technology, ensuring that our solutions remain at the forefront of the industry

Qualifications

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in blockchain and software architectural design and implementation
• Experience shipping production-grade software development using Go or Rust
• Strong command of blockchain infrastructure, architectural designs, and solutions
• Experience with applied cryptography, distributed systems, and smart contract development
• Strong communication and collaboration abilities in a remote environment
• Exceptional problem-solving and critical thinking skills

Nice to Have

• An established publication record in applied cryptography, security, cryptoeconomics, MEV, blockchain, distributed system, or related domains
• Prior experience working with open-source projects and engaging with the community
• Expertise with MEV-related concepts and developments

About Flashbots

Flashbots started in 2020 as a research and development organization formed to mitigate the negative externalities and existential risks posed by Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) to smart-contract blockchains, starting with Ethereum. We build products to maximally decentralize public blockchains, redistribute MEV, and empower users. We work closely with our community to ensure that our products have a positive impact, are secure, and can be used in production at scale.

Our Impact

Since the launch of Flashbots, we have had an immense impact on the world of cryptocurrency. The Flashbots Auction was launched in alpha in January 2021 and was quickly adopted by almost all Ethereum miners. Prior to Ethereum’s Merge in 2022, Flashbots launched MEV-Boost, a temporary solution for out-of-protocol proposer-builder separation. MEV-Boost has since been adopted by over 90% of Ethereum validators and has significantly influenced the Ethereum PoS ecosystem. Now, Flashbots continues its journey with the introduction of novel privacy primitives and SUAVE.

Our Research

Flashbots Research is an independent arm of the organization that aims to become the hub of MEV research. In addition to conducting in-house analysis, Flashbots Research collaborates with external researchers at other institutions via an external grants program. Flashbots Research continues to publish seminal research on MEV, covering a wide range of topics including cross-chain MEV, EIP1559 and MEV, how ETH2 affects MEV, SGX and privacy, and more. For a full list of publications, visit writings.flashbots.net.

Why Flashbots?

• Competitive salary
• Significantly above market rate equity compensation package
• Unlimited PTO with a high level of freedom and autonomy for your work
• Yearly budget for your individual learning and development goals
• Work alongside the brightest minds in the crypto space
• Help build the future of blockchain technology
• Attractive health cover package for US employees
• Remote working - travel and work from anywhere in the world
• Paid travel - team on-sites in different parts of the world, several times a year

At Flashbots, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive team. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, age, or disability status.