What We Are Building
Watchtower is an AI native decision and simulation engine designed for contested logistics and operational planning.
It is built to operate when data is missing, contradictory, delayed, or degraded, the conditions where planning is hardest and where decisions matter most.
Company
Vision
Enable freedom of action in highly contested and uncertain environments.
Future conflict and competition will be shaped by who can maneuver, supply, and adapt faster than disruption and adversaries can react.
Freedom of action means leaders can continue to operate confidently even when information is incomplete, infrastructure is stressed, and timelines are collapsing.
What begins in defense increasingly applies wherever complexity, risk, and uncertainty define outcomes.
Mission
Help the U.S. military and its allies outpace the future of conflict.
We started with logistics because it is foundational to every operation. The ability to move, supply, and sustain forces under pressure is a prerequisite for any credible plan, any deterrent posture, and any sustained campaign.
Today’s planning systems cannot keep up with the speed, scale, and uncertainty of modern operations. They break under disruption, struggle with incomplete and contradictory data, and fail to internalize second and third order effects in time to matter.
We are building AI native decision and simulation systems that help commanders and staffs understand future states, test courses of action, and adapt continuously as conditions change.
While our first focus is enabling the U.S. military and its partners to prepare, deter, and, if required, prevail in conflict, the underlying architecture is designed to extend wherever organizations must make consequential decisions under uncertainty.
Team
We bring together deep operational experience, world-class engineering, and a commitment to mission impact above all else.
Leadership & Engineering
World-Class Engineering
- Former Microsoft engineers who built and scaled massive distributed systems, multi-agent platforms, and real-time intelligent services.
- Experienced business leads with extensive DoW deployment experience across logistics, operations, intelligence, and sustainment.
- Technologists with deep expertise in AI, simulation, optimization, routing, and secure infrastructure.
Operators & Advisors
Deep Operational Experience
- Former infantry, SOF, logistics, and surface warfare officers with real-world sustainment, materiel readiness, and joint planning experience.
- National security leaders, including a former Chief of Staff of the Air Force, former Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, and former Director of DIU.
Values
We Operate With:
- Uncompromising agency
- Zero ego & mission-first mindset
- Extreme ownership
- Relentless learning
- Resilience under pressure
- Team before self
- Long-term thinking, shipped daily
Namesake
Why “Watchtower”
The name Watchtower references Operation Watchtower, the World War II campaign on Guadalcanal — one of the most intense, resource-constrained, and consequential battles in the Pacific. It demanded improvisation, resilience, and rapid decision-making under extreme uncertainty.
It was also the campaign where figures like John Basilone, later portrayed in HBO’s The Pacific, emerged as symbols of courage and clarity under pressure.
We chose the name because we wanted to ground the company in real history and real places, where previous generations faced overwhelming uncertainty yet fought to defend our way of life. The challenges they confronted rhyme with the modern challenge of making decisions when information is incomplete and time is short.
Watchtower is a reminder that technology should help people rise to those moments.
Open Positions
Join us!
Careers
At Watchtower Labs, we're an AI-first team with a singular mission: tackle the most demanding technical challenges in critical simulations and defense. No map. No safety net. Just brilliance, grit, and the will to create the future. We offer explosive personal growth and the rare opportunity to operate at the edge of innovation.
Your move: send 3 bullet points that show us why you belong on this mission.
US Citizenship required for all roles. Active clearance required for Mission roles.
Engineers & Operators email: jobs@watchtowerlabs.ai
1. Backend Engineer — Simulation & Distributed Systems
Location: Bellevue, WA (4+ days onsite)
Stack: C#, .NET, AWS (Secret Environment), Docker, Kubernetes
Join a well-funded, high-caliber startup tackling some of the most complex technical challenges in the contested logistics and national security space. As a Backend Engineer, you'll help architect and build the core simulation engine powering intelligent, autonomous decision-making in dynamic, high-stakes environments.
You’ll work directly on distributed systems that must operate reliably under uncertainty, driving breakthrough performance using modern engineering practices and secure infrastructure. This isn’t a maintenance role—it’s for a builder who can own and evolve systems at the core of our product.
What You'll Do:
- Design and scale the backend for our multi-agent simulation platform
- Own distributed system components from architecture to deployment
- Collaborate with AI and frontend teams to power real-time decision loops
- Work in secure cloud environments to deliver production-grade systems
Ideal Candidate:
- 2–6 years of hands-on backend experience, preferably in C#/.NET
- Strong grasp of system design and distributed architectures
- Ownership mindset with a bias toward shipping impactful code
- Comfortable navigating high-performance, mission-driven teams
This is more than just engineering—it’s a chance to protect lives, shape national security, and be part of a team that’s building what others only theorize.
2. UX Developer — Frontend Systems & Design to Scale
Location: Bellevue, WA (4+ days onsite)
Stack: TypeScript, Vite, React
We’re looking for a UX-focused Frontend Developer who can bring clean, scalable, and intuitive interfaces to life—with minimal design oversight. Our mission is deeply impactful, and your work will shape how operators interact with AI and simulation systems designed to safeguard our country.
You’ll help define reusable component systems and build UX patterns that withstand complexity. This role is perfect for someone who codes with craft and cares about every user interaction, from micro-interactions to performance.
What You’ll Do:
- Build and maintain reusable, high-quality UI components
- Translate complex agent behaviors and simulation results into usable interfaces
- Own frontend architecture decisions and interaction paradigms
- Collaborate closely with backend and AI teams to integrate data-rich UIs
Ideal Candidate:
- Deep expertise in TypeScript and modern frontend tooling (Vite, React)
- Passion for interaction design and performance at scale
- Self-directed with strong product instincts and attention to UX details
- Eager to work on purpose-driven, impactful technology
Build the interface to the future. Your code will not only enable national security but drive how humans collaborate with AI in critical missions.
3. AI/ML Engineer — LLMs, Agents & Simulation Modeling
Location: Bellevue, WA (4+ days onsite)
Stack: Python (Primary), C# (Optional), LLMs, Optimization & Simulation
We’re applying frontier AI and LLM technology to domains where outcomes are measured in lives saved, logistics won, and missions completed. As an AI/ML Engineer, you will lead the integration of large language models into agentic workflows, simulation platforms, and real-time decision engines.
If you’ve ever wanted to work on the bleeding edge of LLM integration, agent design, and AI reasoning at scale, this is your opportunity. You’ll work with a world-class team where deep AI meets domain expertise—and where your work will directly influence national security.
What You’ll Do:
- Build and optimize agentic workflows powered by LLMs
- Drive prompt engineering and architecture for embedded reasoning
- Partner with simulation and backend teams to train and deploy models in real-world scenarios
- Contribute to novel approaches in AI-guided decision making in contested environments
Ideal Candidate:
- 3+ years of experience in AI/ML or applied data science
- Expertise in Python and modern LLMs (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic, open-source stacks)
- Familiarity with optimization, simulation modeling, or autonomous agents
Bonus: experience with secure systems, C#, or decision modeling
4. Mission Engineer
Note: Must hold an active Secret clearance or have held a clearance previously (<2yr from last use and retained eligibility) to apply.
Location: TBD. Best onsite basing to be determined during the hiring process, with some optionality for preference between Bellevue, WA; Honolulu, HI; Burlingame, CA; and the broader National Capital Region. Regular travel to various onsite (customer) locations will be a key component of the role.
Stack: C#, .NET, AWS (Secret Environment), Docker, Kubernetes
Join a well-funded, high-caliber startup tackling some of the most complex technical challenges in the contested logistics and national security space. As a Mission Engineer, you'll forge the technical relationships with key stakeholders — customer and facilitator alike — to ensure successful deployment of our core simulation engine, powering intelligent, autonomous decision-making in dynamic, high-stakes environments.
You’ll work directly on distributed systems that must operate reliably under uncertainty, driving breakthrough performance using modern engineering practices and secure infrastructure. This isn’t a maintenance role—it’s for a solver who can own and evolve the implementation of systems at the core of our product, through tight collaboration with backend, AI, and frontend teams.
What You'll Do:
- Design and scale workflows for our multi-agent simulation platform.
- Collaborate with backend, AI, and frontend teams to train and deploy models in real-world scenarios.
- Optimize agentic workflows powered by LLMs and inform prompt engineering and architecture for embedded reasoning.
- Own distributed system inputs from architecture to implementation
- Work in secure environments, side-by-side with end users, to deliver production-grade systems
Ideal Candidate:
- 2–6 years of hands-on backend experience, preferably in C#/.NET
- Ownership mindset with a bias toward shipping impactful solutions
- Comfortable navigating high-performance, mission-driven teams
- Inherent curiosity about system design and distributed architectures, including optimization, simulation modeling, or autonomous agents
- Familiarity with Python and modern LLMs (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic, open-source stacks)
This is more than just engineering—it’s a chance to protect lives, shape national security, and be part of a team that’s building what others only theorize.
5. Mission Leads
Note: Must hold an active Secret clearance or have held a clearance previously (<2yr from last use and retained eligibility) to apply.
Location: National Capital Region, Colorado, Seattle, Bay Area, Hawaii, and several other emerging locations. Regular travel to customer sites required.
Join a well funded, high caliber startup tackling some of the most complex operational challenges in contested logistics, operational planning and national security. As a Mission Lead, you will own execution of mission critical deployments in secure, real world environments, working directly with users and engineering teams to transition systems from prototype to fielded capability. Get to work on the forefront of how true AI-native applications and agentic workflows are being deployed with our national security enterprise. This is not a coordination role. It is for a mission owner who can shape how core systems are implemented, earn trust through delivery, and ensure performance under uncertainty.
What You'll Do:
- Own delivery of deployments from demo through production
- Work onsite with users in secure environments to ensure operational performance
- Translate operational, contractual, and technical requirements into delivery plans
- Partner closely with backend, AI, and frontend teams on implementation
- Drive product feedback, adoption, and follow on opportunities from mission success
Ideal Candidate:
- 5+ years leading delivery in mission driven or government environments
- Proven ownership from prototype through fielded capability
- Technically fluent and comfortable engaging engineering teams
- Strong operator mindset with a bias toward execution
Clearance:
Active Secret clearance required or previously held within the last two years with retained eligibility.
© 2026 All Rights Reserved — Watchtower Labs