Head of Federal Engineering

The CompanyCape was founded in early 2022 by Palantir and Anduril alums with deep expertise in privacy and national security. While running Palantir's US national security business, our CEO became passionate about privacy and security on mobile devices. Our mission is to be a force for good in global wireless.

At Cape, we are not just another cellular service provider; we are the architects of a privacy-centric movement that starts with the devices in your pocket. We are building a cellular network that helps citizens, including those responsible for our nation's security, regain control of their own data.

We believe that where we are, where we go, and whom we are with are among our most personal information and should be kept private. Privacy is not something you achieve by limiting yourself or by doing less, it is a set of features to be built so you can do more. We have raised money from Andreessen Horowitz and other top-tier VCs, and are excited to grow the team.

The Team

We are relentless builders, constantly pushing the boundaries of whats possible and bringing to life ideas that have never before existed. Innovation is at the core of everything we do. At Cape, we trust our team to deliver greatness and empower them to make a profound impact. As a member of our team, you will collaborate seamlessly with our diverse group of talented engineers and other team members, enjoying dynamic interactions with colleagues from across the organization.

The Problem

The federal government is caught in a paradox. Operators require ubiquitous, high-bandwidth, and low-latency communications, but they are often shackled by highly vulnerable critical infrastructure that is easily disrupted or surveilled. Despite billions in investment, current "secure" solutions are typically clunky, proprietary, and fail at the first sign of a contested RF environment.

We started at first principles to build the secure network architecture and the ability to operate through assumed compromised networks, now we need to solve operational capabilities at scale. How do we provide security-first, resilient communications for operators at the tactical edge? How do we ensure connectivity without compromise when the backhaul is being actively jammed, intercepted, or is physically severed?

We are moving from validated technology to mission-critical infrastructure that works in contested environments when failure is not an option.

Role

Cape's platform gives customers end-to-end control of their digital identity, optimizing for resiliency, privacy, and security at every turn. As the Head of Federal Engineering, you will gain rare insight into the world's most challenging environments. You will own the technical execution of the federal business, partnering with Business Development and Product to bridge the gap between our core technology and the specific, demanding requirements of our government partners.

You will cultivate a high-performing team, providing the mentorship needed to deliver outcomes in highly regulated spaces. Your charge is to grow the business and empower your engineers to work autonomously, making swift decisions in a community that solves the most overlooked yet critical components of modern Command and Control (C2).

Core Responsibilities

• Architect and execute the technical vision for our federal engineering organization, building the secure, resilient, and scalable network and platform that our nations most critical missions depend on.
• Lead, mentor, and inspire a world-class team of engineers dedicated to solving the nations toughest challenges.
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and unwavering integrity, empowering your team to deliver solutions that meet the highest standards of excellence and impact.
• Serve as the key technical partner to our federal customers, translating their complex mission requirements into tangible, deployed solutions.
• Take complete ownership and serve as the technical owner for our federal customers, ensuring that our engineering practices, security protocols, and delivery timelines are not just met, but set a new standard for what is possible in government technology.
• Steer our engagement with the unique challenges and opportunities of the federal landscape, ensuring our solutions are always at the vanguard of innovation and mission-ready.

What We Value

• Proven ability to learn continuously, work independently, and make decisions with minimal supervision.
• Belief that the best leaders empower their teams to achieve the impossible. You are a mentor and a force-multiplier, dedicated to growing the next generation of engineering leaders and fostering a culture where every individual can do their best work in service of the mission.
• Ability to take a thoughtful, practical approach to problem-solving that considers tradeoffs and avoids over-engineering.
• Skill and comfort working in a constantly evolving environment with dynamic objectives and iteration with users.
• Ability to work collaboratively in teams of technical and non-technical individuals and understand how technical decisions impact the people who will use what youre building.
• Understanding of cryptographic systems and how to design privacy-conscious solutions.
• Ability to learn new technology and concepts, even without in-depth experience.
• Ability to balance a forward-looking vision with the concrete realities of government requirements and constraints. You find creative yet practical paths to deploy modern technology within highly regulated environments, ensuring solutions are not just innovative, but also accredit-able and effective.

You are more than a technical leader; you are a diplomat and a strategist. You excel at building strong, collaborative relationships with government partners and internal stakeholders, translating mission needs into technical reality with clarity and conviction.

What We Require

• Engineering background in Computer Science, Mathematics, Computer Engineering, Physics or similar field.
• Demonstrated success leading engineering teams that have built, deployed, and sustained software solutions for U.S. government, defense, or intelligence community customers.
• Deep understanding of modern software architecture, particularly for secure, scalable, and distributed systems. Experience with both cloud (e.g., AWS GovCloud, Azure Government) as well as air-gapped environments, and familiarity with federal security compliance standards (e.g., FedRAMP, RMF, STIGs) is essential.
• Proven ability to define a technical strategy and execute against it, aligning engineering efforts with both customer mission objectives and broader business goals.
• Ability to articulate complex technical concepts with authority and clarity to a wide range of audiences, from your own engineers to senior government officials and non-technical stakeholders.
• Active U.S. Top Secret (TS) security clearance is strongly preferred. At a minimum, you must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

Our Culture

We are builders, and we choose to spend our time building things that matter. Many of our people have backgrounds in Defense Tech as well as the defense and intelligence community. We build to win.

We hire excellent people, give them outsized responsibility, and trust them to execute at a high level. Everyone here has a track record of solving hard problems throughout their careers.

We believe that personal privacy and national security interests are not inherently at odds, and can be reconciled via strong technology.

We believe that companies exist to build awesome things and take care of their people. Our benefits reflect that - top-tier health care, 401(k) matching, and a generous vacation policy (that we actually use).

We hire candidates of any race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital or family status, disability, Veteran status, and any other status. Achieving diversity across these categories will serve to make our company stronger and our product better.

How to Apply

Click the link below to apply.

We reserve the right to make use of any unsolicited resumes received from outside recruiting agencies and / or individual recruiters without being responsible for payment of any fees asserted from the use of unsolicited resumes.