Stay in the loop.

Follow @raikucom on Twitter for product updates, engineering deep dives, and a closer look at how we’re building the future of blockspace.

About Raiku

Raiku is reengineering blockchain infrastructure from first principles to make global digital markets as precise and dependable as physical systems. Built on Solana, our platform delivers deterministic execution, guaranteed inclusion, and low-latency performance—solving the foundational failures that cause transactions to miss, trades to revert, and systems to collapse under pressure. By placing high-performance compute close to where transactions happen and coordinating execution through our advanced scheduling engine, Raiku empowers developers to build scalable, high-performance applications—and gives institutions the reliability and control they demand. We believe financial infrastructure should behave like physics: fast, reliable, and predictable—every time, without exception.

Research Engineer (Solana/Rust)

We’re seeking a passionate Research Engineer to drive protocol-level innovation on Solana. As the ideal candidate, you’ll combine deep technical expertise with scientific curiosity to:

• Lead technical discovery initiatives focused on Solana’s runtime, consensus, scheduler, and networking layers
• Conduct performance modeling and develop validator-centric architecture solutions
• Identify and address complex edge cases in transaction handling across production environments
• Translate research findings into actionable protocol design improvements

You’ll collaborate directly with our CEO, CTO (your manager), protocol architects, and key Solana ecosystem contributors to shape validator economics and transaction lifecycle guarantees across the Raiku stack.

Key Responsibilities

• Analyze and model Solana’s core architecture — deeply understand and document Solana’s runtime, scheduler, consensus, Turbine/Gossip, and transaction pipeline, with emphasis on edge cases under network stress or validator misbehavior.
• Lead internal research on validator economics and incentive alignment — explore impacts of Raiku’s slot marketplace, Ahead-of-Time (AOT) block auctions, and inclusion guarantees on validator profitability and slashing risks (e.g. under SIMDs 0096, 0123, 0212, 0228).
• Design bandwidth and blockspace pricing models — define and simulate pricing mechanisms for Raiku’s primary and secondary slot markets, ensuring validator rewards and application inclusion needs are economically aligned.
• Prototype system-level experiments across the Raiku and Solana stack — evaluate performance, liveness, and correctness when integrating Raiku’s ackermann-node and sidecar into Solana validator clients (e.g. Agave, Jito).
• Develop proofs-of-concept for transaction lifecycle primitives — such as pre-confirmations, slot reservations, and proof streaming for large bundled state transitions.
• Research and benchmark global account models — test interaction models across multiple VMs (e.g. SVM, EVM, MOVE) and assess state determinism and composability in high-throughput environments.
• Contribute to the design of Raiku’s protocol-level mechanisms — including builder commitments, proposer formats, MEV mitigation strategies, and slot slashing logic under failure modes.
• Author technical deep dives, simulations, and RFCs — serve as a knowledge base for both internal and external stakeholders across Raiku’s validator, capital, and app layers along with wider engineering and marketing teams.
• Collaborate with external researchers and validators — especially those running testnet sidecars or participating in bandwidth resale to ensure safe and performant mainnet integration.

Preferred Qualifications

• Technical background with strong system-level experience
• Proven open-source engineering background, evidenced by contributions to major blockchain or distributed systems repositories — ideally within the Solana ecosystem.
• Involvement in protocol research, MEV, performance tuning, or client implementations
• Experience designing proofs-of-concept for novel execution or slot-inclusion logic
• Familiarity with zero-knowledge proof systems and state settlement patterns
• Active presence in relevant research circles, Discords, or open-source forums

What We’re Looking For

• 3+ years of experience working with Rust in production (preferably in core systems or blockchain contexts)
• Deep familiarity with Solana’s source code and protocol-level architecture (runtime, scheduler, consensus, networking)
• Demonstrated ability to reason through complex distributed systems
• Experience modeling and explaining performance bottlenecks in real-world validators
• Ability to read protocol proposals and specs and convert them into actionables (e.g. implementation paths, test harnesses, edge case coverage)
• A deep design philosophy focused on deterministic execution and reliable system behavior
• Strong communication skills and clarity in technical writing

What We Offer

• A chance to join a category-defining protocol team pushing the frontier of Solana infrastructure
• Token upside and a key role in shaping Raiku’s ecosystem footprint
• Remote-first team with async workflows, a high ownership culture, and deep technical curiosity
• Competitive salary, token allocation, and performance-based bonuses
• Budget for travel, ecosystem events, and home office setup

About Aztec At Aztec, our goal is to add privacy to Ethereum. In the current public blockchain paradigm, users and entities unknowingly broadcast data in the public, compromising privacy and security to get trustlessness. Not only are unencrypted blockchains inherently privacy-exposing, they require significant redundancy to compute and verify the legitimacy of transactions. Implementing scalable encryption in a public blockchain paradigm requires cutting-edge math and engineering. Thankfully, our team of scientists and engineers invented Plonk, the industry-standard zkSNARK, and Noir, the universal language of zero knowledge. Now, we’re building a first of its kind Layer 2 with private smart contracts. This requires new cryptographic primitives, a zero-knowledge DSL for writing contracts, a privacy-friendly execution environment, a carefully designed set of circuits that prove the validity of the chain to L1, a decentralized block-building and proving mechanism, and a top-tier user and developer experience. And it’s now time to bring it to market. We’ve raised $125 million from industry-leading investors including a16z crypto, Paradigm, Variant, Consensys, and a_capital, and we’re growing quickly.The Role We’re looking for a DevOps Engineer with deep Linux expertise and a passion for building developer-centric tooling. You’ll work closely with our CTO and engineering teams to enhance our internal infrastructure, CI systems, and productivity pipelines. This is a hands-on, high-impact role - ideal for someone who thrives on owning the tools that engineers rely on every day. What You’ll Do

Take ownership of Aztec’s custom CI system and internal build tools. Enhance and build CI dashboards to improve observability of engineering workflows. Harden CI infrastructure using least privilege principles and robust sandboxing. Implement productivity enhancements across C++, Rust, Solidity, and TypeScript build systems. Investigate and resolve low-level bugs related to Linux processes, signals, memory, and IPC. Collaborate face-to-face during your ramp-up phase in our London office. Optionally grow into a leadership role as the internal infrastructure team expands.

💡 Explore our CI system in action: http://ci.aztec-labs.com and the code here. About You You might be a great fit if you:

Prefer scripting custom Bash over fighting YAML in legacy CI systems. Experience with cgroups, kernel namespaces, virtual memory, /proc, and tracing syscalls. Extensive experience with terraform and AWS cloud infrastructure. Know Docker intimately, from minimizing image sizes to how it leverages kernel features. Have experience maintaining complex software stacks and CI systems at scale. Are comfortable with debugging process groups, signals, and build failures at the OS layer. Take pride in building secure, reliable, and fast developer infrastructure.

What We Offer:

Flexible, remote-first culture with HQ in London. Competitive salary + equity/token options. 25 days annual leave + bank holidays. Health, dental, and retirement benefits (based on location). Quarterly offsites for team collaboration and bonding. Conference and learning budget for continual professional development.

A chance to work on truly cutting-edge zero-knowledge infrastructure with some of the best minds in the field.Aztec Labs is an equal opportunity employer and we value creativity, diversity, and intellectual curiosity. If you're passionate about leveraging your creative talents to make a real-world impact, and if you want to be part of a team that's shaping the future of digital privacy, then we would love to hear from you.

Apply Now:

Caiz

Revolutionizing Islamic Finance with Blockchain Technology

Are you ready to be part of a groundbreaking initiative that combines Islamic finance principles with cutting-edge blockchain technology?

Look no further than Caiz – The First Islamic Ecosystem Built on Blockchain

At Caiz, our mission is clear: to create a Fiqh compliant financial ecosystem that provides our community with fair and easy access to ethical financial products and services. We believe in empowering individuals to build a strong financial future while engaging in long-term economically beneficial behavior.

Our native coin, Caizcoin, that fuels the Caizblockchain. With Caizcoin, you can make seamless payments, store value, and interact with a range of ethical financial products we are developing. The centerpiece of our ecosystem is the innovative Caizapp, giving users complete control over their digital assets.

We are a passionate team reshaping finance, and we are expanding our dynamic workforce. Join us in a collaborative work environment focused on creating a fast and compliant money transfer structure.

Why to Join Caiz?

• Innovative & Purpose-Driven: At Caiz, we combine advanced blockchain technology with the principles of Islamic finance to create an innovative and modern financial system. Join us to be part of a forward-thinking organization that is reshaping the future of finance.
• Ethical Impact: As part of Caiz, you'll be working in an Organization that prioritizes ethics and integrity in all its operations, ensuring that every solution we offer aligns with the core values of fairness, transparency, and respect.
• Growth & Learning Opportunities: At Caiz, we value personal and professional growth. You'll have the opportunity to learn, innovate, and grow within a dynamic, supportive environment, while contributing to the development of ethical financial solutions.
• Global Vision, Local Impact: Caiz is focused on creating an inclusive, sustainable financial system that empowers individuals globally. You’ll be contributing to a company that has a positive impact on local communities and the global financial landscape.
• Collaborative Culture: We believe in teamwork and collaboration. You'll work alongside passionate professionals who are committed to driving change in the crypto and blockchain space, working together to create an ethical financial future.
• Secure & Transparent Environment: We emphasize trust and security in all aspects of our operations. As part of Caiz, you’ll be part of a transparent organization that values customer trust and ensures the highest security standards in the crypto space.

Tasks

We are looking for a highly skilled Blockchain Developer with expertise in Solidity and Rust to join our growing engineering team. You will play a key role in developing and optimizing smart contracts, blockchain protocols, and DeFi components that power the Caiz ecosystem.

As part of the core blockchain development team, you’ll work on both Ethereum-compatible smart contracts and Rust-based custom chain logic, contributing to secure, scalable, and innovative blockchain infrastructure.

Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and deploy smart contracts using Solidity on EVM-compatible blockchains.
• Build and maintain Rust-based blockchain modules, such as on Substrate or Solana-compatible platforms.
• Contribute to the design of custom blockchain protocols and token standards.
• Write secure, gas-optimized, and thoroughly tested smart contracts.
• Collaborate with frontend and backend teams to integrate blockchain components into products.
• Conduct code reviews, audits, and vulnerability assessments for blockchain code.
• Analyze and improve the performance, security, and scalability of the Caiz blockchain.
• Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in blockchain technologies, including new EIPs, cryptographic primitives, and layer-2 solutions.

Requirements

Experience:

• 3+ years of experience in blockchain development with hands-on coding in Solidity and Rust.
• Strong understanding of smart contract design, blockchain architecture, cryptography, and consensus mechanisms.
• Experience developing and deploying smart contracts on Ethereum or similar EVM chains.
• Proficiency in Rust for blockchain environments such as Substrate or Solana.
• Familiarity with Web3.js, Ethers.js, Hardhat, Truffle, and related tools.
• Understanding of DeFi protocols, token standards (ERC-20, ERC-721, etc.), and layer-1/layer-2 ecosystems.
• Experience with version control systems (Git) and CI/CD workflows.
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to write clean, maintainable code.

Preferred Skills

• Experience in building or contributing to a Layer 1 or Layer 2 blockchain.
• Knowledge of blockchain security best practices and audit processes.
• Exposure to zero-knowledge proofs (ZK), rollups, or cross-chain bridges.
• Experience in working within agile or startup environments.
• Understanding of Islamic finance or Sharia-compliant financial principles is a plus.

Level of studies: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Mathematics, or a related technical field.

Language Requirements: Fluent in English

Benefits

Benefits at Caiz:

• Competitive Financial Compensation: We offer financial benefits that reflect the value of your work and dedication.
• Work Flexibility: Enjoy the flexibility to work from home, the office, or even abroad.
• Annual Holidays: Generous paid time off to help you maintain a healthy work-life balance.
• Relocation Assistance: We provide relocation support for employees moving to new locations.
• Professional Development: Opportunities for training, certifications, and career growth.
• Employee Recognition: Programs to celebrate and reward your achievements and contributions.
• Inclusive & Collaborative Culture: A supportive and diverse work environment where your voice matters.
• Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion: We are committed to fostering a workplace that values diversity and promotes equality and inclusion for all employees.

Don't miss this opportunity – apply now and be part of the Caiz revolution.

Apply Now: