Backend Software Engineer Engineering

Anticipated start date:
As soon as possible

Closing Date: 23rd February 2026

Salary Band: £40k - £55k (depending on experience)

Full Time, Sheffield, UK

Do you want to build the backend systems that power autonomous laboratories? Do you enjoy designing reliable, high-performance services and data systems that other engineers depend on? Do you want to work at the intersection of software, hardware, and real-world scientific workflows, where correctness actually matters?

At Unicorn Biotechnologies, we are building autonomous laboratory systems that combine robotics, biology, and software. We are looking for a Backend Engineer to build the core backend services and data foundations that enable our scientist-facing products and internal tools.

You will play a crucial role in building the future of autonomous science, creating tools to help scientists discover and manufacture new medicines and products, and in helping us fulfill our ambition to be one of the largest biotech companies in the world (we think and go for big).

• A bias for action to build products with customer value.
• Engineers who care about what they build, not just how.
• Clear thinking, pragmatism, and sound judgment over buzzwords.
• Friendly, organised, efficient, and enthusiastic people with a can-do attitude.
• People who take responsibility and follow problems through.
• Using the right tools, including AI, to work smarter.
• Low-ego individuals who love asking questions & go above and beyond to help the team succeed.

As a Backend Engineer at Unicorn, you will be responsible for designing and building the backend systems that support our platform.

This role is fundamentally about reliability, data integrity, security, and scalable system design. You will build services, APIs, data models, and supporting infrastructure that enable our full-stack engineers, scientists, and hardware teams to build great products on a trustworthy foundation.

You will work closely with our engineering and science teams to define and implement backend systems that support:

• Instrument control and orchestration workflows.
• Data capture, storage, auditability, and traceability.
• Secure user management and permissions.
• Integrations with internal systems (LIMS, ERP, accounting, QC workflows).
• cGxP-adjacent requirements where needed (e.g., CFR Part 11 compliance).

This is a role for someone who enjoys building the “spine” of a product, the systems that must be correct, observable, and dependable.

The startup journey is not easy, nor for the faint of heart. You must see this challenge as invigorating rather than intimidating. Your work will be exciting, and the learning opportunities will be significant. Expect to expand your skill set more in a year than many do in five years.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design and implement backend services that support Unicorn’s products and internal tooling.
• Own database design and data modelling (including performance, integrity, migrations, and traceability).
• Build and maintain APIs and service contracts that enable product features.
• Ensure systems are observable, debuggable, and reliable (logging, metrics, monitoring, alerting).
• secure authentication/authorization and permission systems.
• Support integrations across internal operational systems (e.g., ERP, accounting, LIMS).
• Collaborate with embedded and hardware teams to support instrument workflows and machine data.
• Contribute to cGxP-adjacent compliance efforts when required (audit trails, access controls, electronic records, validation support).
• Identify and reduce technical risk (failure modes, data loss, security issues, operational fragility).

• A pragmatic, builder’s mindset, you enjoy rapid iteration, fabrication, and practical problem-solving.
• Demonstrated experience building and managing scalable data infrastructure systems.
• Strong proficiency in Python (or equivalent backend language; Python preferred).
• Solid experience working with relational databases (e.g., Postgre
  
  SQL) and data modelling.
• Experience designing and maintaining reliable APIs and backend services.
• Comfort taking ownership of system reliability and technical risk.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to work…