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Principal Backend Engineer|Architect
Principal Backend Engineer|ArchitectLUDEX, LLC • Chicago, IL, US
Principal Backend Engineer|Architect

Principal Backend Engineer|Architect

LUDEX, LLC • Chicago, IL, US
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Job Description

Job Description

Principal Backend Engineer | Architect

Location : Chicago, IL (Hybrid – 1 day / week in-office)

Company : Ludex, Inc.

About Ludex

Ludex is a consumer-facing technology platform transforming the sports and trading card hobby through AI-driven scanning, data, and marketplace tools. We build products used by millions of collectors and enterprise sellers, and we move fast. If you thrive in a startup environment where ownership, velocity, and impact matter, you’ll feel at home here.

Role Overview

We are seeking a hands-on Principal Engineer to help design, build, and scale the backend systems that power Ludex’s consumer and Enterprise products. This role is ideal for an experienced engineer who enjoys building high-performance, scalable applications, working close to the product, and operating with an entrepreneurial mindset.

You will play a critical role in architecture decisions, performance optimization, and the evolution of our platform as we scale users, data volume, and revenue.

This role requires a high level of ownership and autonomy. You will be responsible for making key backend architecture decisions and driving execution in a fast-moving startup environment.

Key Responsibilities

  • Design, develop, and maintain scalable backend services using Node.js, NestJS, and TypeScript
  • Build and optimize APIs that support consumer-facing products and enterprise workflows
  • Design, manage, and optimize PostgreSQL databases and data models for performance and reliability
  • Work with AWS infrastructure (e.g., EC2, RDS, S3, Lambda, CloudWatch, etc.)
  • Collaborate closely with frontend engineers, product, and other teams to deliver end-to-end features
  • Ensure high standards for code quality, efficiency, security, and performance
  • Identify and resolve performance bottlenecks across services and databases
  • Participate in architecture discussions and contribute to long-term technical strategy
  • Support deployments, monitoring, and system reliability in production environments
  • Thrive in a fast-paced startup environment, balancing speed with sound engineering judgment

Required Qualifications

  • 7+ years of professional backend engineering experience
  • Strong proficiency with Node.js and TypeScript
  • Hands-on experience with NestJS or similar backend frameworks
  • Deep experience working with relational databases, particularly PostgreSQL
  • Proven experience building and scaling consumer-facing applications
  • Experience working with AWS in production environments
  • Strong understanding of API design, data modeling, and system architecture
  • Ability to write clean, efficient, maintainable, and well-tested code
  • Strong ability to independently evaluate technical approaches and make architecture decisions in a startup environment.
  • Proven experience owning backend systems end-to-end, including design, implementation, deployment, and ongoing evolution.
  • Comfortable working in ambiguous, fast-moving environments with evolving requirements
  • Strong communication skills and a collaborative mindset

    • Nice to Have

  • DevOps experience, including CI / CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code, or deployment automation
  • Experience with system monitoring, observability, and performance tuning
  • Experience supporting high-scale or data-intensive applications
  • Prior startup or high-growth company experience

    • Work Environment

  • Hybrid role : must be able to work in-office in Chicago at least 1 day per week
  • Collaborative, hands-on engineering culture
  • Small team, high ownership, and real influence on product direction

    • Why Ludex

  • Build products used by millions of passionate collectors
  • High-impact role with real ownership and visibility
  • Opportunity to shape architecture and engineering standards
  • Fast-moving, entrepreneurial environment without heavy bureaucracy

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