What's the interview process at nRouter?

A 30-minute intro call, a paid take-home project scoped to ~4 hours, and a final team conversation. The whole loop takes about a week end-to-end.

Does nRouter offer visa sponsorship?

We're a remote-first company and hire through employer-of-record services in most countries. We don't sponsor US H-1B visas today.

What's the tech stack at nRouter?

Next.js 16 App Router, TypeScript 5.7, Tailwind CSS 4, Supabase (Postgres + RLS), and a high-performance Rust LLM gateway (nrouter-rust-gateway) deployed on Azure Container Apps with Azure Key Vault.

What's the team culture like at nRouter?

Small team (under 15 people), async-first, high ownership. We ship fast, iterate on real user feedback, and build in the open.

Forward Deployed Engineer – Software & AI Solutions

About the role

You will work directly with customer engineering teams to build, deploy, and support production software and AI solutions on nRouter.

You will connect backend systems (Java, Spring Boot, Python, FastAPI) with modern LLM workflows (prompting, RAG, tool calling).

This is a full-time role (40 hours/week) starting with a 3-month evaluation internship, followed by $64,000 – $100,000/yr compensation based on performance.

What you'll do

Build and deploy backend microservices and REST APIs in Java (Spring Boot) and Python (FastAPI)
Integrate customer systems with databases (PostgreSQL), message queues (Kafka, Redis), and cloud infra (AWS, Docker, Kubernetes)
Connect applied AI features — LLM APIs, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and intelligent routing — to live workloads
Work directly with customer engineering teams to turn requirements into working code
Debug, test, and support integrations in production to keep reliability high

Required experience

Degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related quantitative field
Solid coding skills in Java and Python with strong CS and OOP fundamentals
Hands-on experience with REST APIs and frameworks (Spring Boot or FastAPI)
Familiarity with SQL (PostgreSQL), Docker, and basic cloud concepts (AWS)
Full-time 40 hrs/week commitment: 3-month evaluation internship leading to $64k–$100k/yr based on performance

Nice to have (3)

Experience with Kafka, Redis, or vector databases
Basic React and TypeScript skills
Open-source work, GitHub projects, or hackathon builds

How We Work & Engineering Culture

We build high-concurrency LLM routing infrastructure. We value deep focus, small teams, and engineers who take genuine pride in their craft.

Async-First Remote Philosophy & Deep Work

We protect uninterrupted focus time. We communicate through concise RFCs, PR descriptions, and async issue tracking instead of recurring status meetings.

Rapid Shipping & Continuous Production Delivery

We ship small, continuous improvements. Every engineer has direct access to production traces, telemetry, and automated deployment pipelines.

Zero Bureaucracy & Direct Code Ownership

Engineers own their decisions. If you spot a performance bottleneck or an integration gap, you have the trust and autonomy to ship the fix.

Uncompromising Craft & Systems Rigor

Reliability matters when production money and customer workflows depend on our gateway. We write idiomatic code backed by rigorous automated test suites.

High Talent Density & Continuous Learning

We keep our team small and focused. We support your growth with annual learning budgets, conference sponsorships, and hands-on exposure to frontier models.

Interview & Hiring Process

No whiteboard puzzles or trick questions. Our loop is practical, respectful of your time, and finishes in 5 to 10 business days.

1
Step 1: Application Review & Work Sample Evaluation
We review your application, resume, and public GitHub projects or code repositories within 3 to 5 business days.
2
Step 2: 30-Minute Intro & Recruiter / Engineering Conversation
A 30-minute video conversation to discuss your background, interests, and what we are building at nRouter.
3
Step 3: Technical & Architecture Deep Dive
A code walkthrough of a past project you built or a focused take-home exercise (~3 hours) on realistic systems tasks.
4
Step 4: System Design & Cross-Functional Collaboration
A 60-minute session exploring realistic system tradeoffs and customer scenarios with team members.
5
Step 5: Fast Offer with Transparent Equity & Compensation
We move quickly with transparent terms covering competitive base pay, stock options, and benefits.

Benefits, Compensation & Total Rewards FAQ

Clear, transparent compensation designed to support you and your family globally.

How is cash compensation and equity structured at nRouter?

We provide competitive regional cash base pay plus stock options with standard 4-year vesting and a 1-year cliff.

How does international health coverage and remote employment work?

We hire globally through local EOR partners in 30+ countries, providing statutory benefits and private medical, dental, and vision insurance.

What equipment, home office, and workspace stipends do you provide?

New hires receive an Apple Silicon MacBook Pro, a $2,500 home workspace setup budget, and a $150/month internet stipend.

What is your flexible PTO, vacation, and parental leave policy?

Flexible time off with a minimum of 20 paid vacation days annually, all public holidays, and 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave.

Is there an annual learning, conference, and development budget?

Every team member receives a $2,000 annual budget for attending technical conferences, taking courses, and purchasing technical books.

How are performance reviews and compensation refreshes handled?

We run twice-yearly reviews to align base pay and equity refreshes with your ownership, technical impact, and expanding scope.

Equal Opportunity & Accommodations Commitment

nRouter is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome builders from all backgrounds and non-traditional career paths.

If you need reasonable accommodations at any stage of our interview process, reach out directly to careers@nrouter.ai. Requests are kept confidential and have zero adverse impact on your application.