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Backend Software Engineer - Defense

Palantir Technologies Inc. · Palo Alto, CA · posted 623 days ago

In short: Backend Software Engineer - Defense at Palantir Technologies Inc. in Palo Alto, CA, posted 623 days ago.

By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 09/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.

Palantir Technologies Inc.employer

Palo Alto, CAlocation

Software engineeringsub-niche

623 days agoposted

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The job

LIVE Employer public job feed (private-sector employer) Source: the employer's public careers feed · Data: listed 2025-02-24

Employer	Palantir Technologies Inc.
Location	Palo Alto, California
Field	Technology › Software engineering
Level	not stated
Source category	Dev
Posted	2025-02-24 (623 days ago)
Work arrangement	On-site at the location listed
Pay	Not published in the source listing

Job description

A World-Changing Company Palantir builds the world’s leading software for data-driven decisions and operations. By bringing the right data to the people who need it, our platforms empower our partners to develop lifesaving drugs, forecast supply chain disruptions, locate missing children, and more.
The Role Palantir's defense product vertical builds mission-critical products for the modern warfighter. We provide a complete ecosystem where customers can securely integrate and visualize their data, and build sophisticated, full-fledged programs such as common operating pictures, alert-triaging inboxes, and resource allocation planning tools driven by rich-ML models. Our customers use our defense offering to perform rich analyses that drive core operations within their organizations - these programs are relied upon for daily operations in the command centers and battlefronts of militaries across the world. Backend Software Engineers at Palantir build software at scale to transform how organizations use data. Our Software Engineers are involved throughout the product lifecycle, from idea generation, design, prototyping, and production delivery. You will collaborate closely with technical and non-technical teammates to understand our customers' problems and build products that solve them. We encourage movement across teams to share context, skills, and experience, so you'll learn about many different technologies and aspects of each product. Engineers work autonomously and make decisions independently, within a community that will support and challenge you as you grow and develop, becoming a strong technical contributor and engineering leader. Your day-to-day workflow will vary, adapting to the requirements of our users and the technical challenges that arise. One day, you may find yourself collaborating with other engineers to architect a new system that enables a novel workflow, the next you could be fine-tuning performance to enable low-latency operational outcomes. Our Product Development organization is made up of small teams of Software Engineers. Each team focuses on a specific aspect of a product and work collaboratively to build cross functional capabilities, streamline user workflows and continuously improve our software's efficiency and reliability. We're hiring engineers who are passionate about solving real-world problems and empowering developers and end-users to do their work optimally. If you’re motivated to develop reliable, performant, scalable systems and design robust APIs and primitives, please join us.

Some examples of product work you could work on are:

Build for high-scale, collaborative, geospatial workflows (Gaia)

Design sophisticated frameworks to enable complex workflows across applications in a single workspace

Develop the next generation of real-time collaborative tooling and data-analysis solutions (Secure Collaboration)

Core Responsibilities

Architecting, developing, and maintaining high-performance, scalable backend services that underpin our our operational data and AI systems

Maintaining high coding standards through the development of guidelines, active participation in code reviews, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and knowledge sharing among your team

Building robust APIs for use by front-end developers and interfacing external systems, and collaborating with front-end developers to integrate user-facing elements with server-side logic

Designing efficient data structures and algorithms to manage large-scale and high throughput data

Optimizing applications for speed and scalability through performance analysis

Actively improve user workflows by collaborating with cross-functional teams, ensuring seamless experiences across product boundaries and a cohesive user experience

Technologies We Use

Different backend languages, including Java, Rust, Python and Go

Distributed systems technologies such as Kafka, Cassandra, Elasticsearch and Spark

Docker and Kubernetes for containerization and orchestration

Industry-standard build tooling, including Gradle and GitHub

What We Value

A deep understanding of server-side logic, efficient data handling, and distributed systems

Strong focus on creating user-oriented workflows and solutions, crossing product boundaries to deliver cohesive and solid user workflows that ensure a seamless and intuitive user experience

Experience building high-quality software in a fast-paced CI/CD development environment

Ability to work collaboratively in teams of technical and non-technical individuals and understand how technical decisions impact the people who will use what you're building

Skill and comfort working in a constantly evolving environment with dynamic objectives and iteration with users

What We Require

Experience in designing and developing features and improvements, as well as supporting and maintaining, live backend systems

In-depth understanding of data structures, system architecture, API development for microservices frameworks, distributed systems and other backend-related concepts and best practices

Engineering background in Computer Science, Mathematics, Software Engineering, Physics or similar field

Strong coding skills with demonstrated proficiency in programming languages, such as Java, C++, Python, Rust, or similar languages

Strong written and verbal communication skills and ability to iterate quickly with teammates, incorporating feedback and holding a high bar for quality

Eligibility and willingness to obtain a US Security clearance

Salary The estimated salary range for this position is estimated to be $135,000 - $200,000/year. Total compensation for this position may also include Restricted Stock units, sign-on bonus and other potential future incentives. Further note that total compensation for this position will be determined by each individual’s relevant qualifications, work experience, skills, and other factors. This estimate excludes the value of any potential sign-on bonus; the value of any benefits offered; and the potential future value of any long-term incentives.
Our benefits aim to promote health and wellbeing across all areas of Palantirians’ lives. We work to continuously improve our offerings and listen to our community as we design and update them. The list below details our available benefits and some of the perks that can be enjoyed as an employee of Palantir Technologies. Benefits • Employees (and their eligible dependents) can enroll in medical, dental, and vision insurance as well as voluntary life insurance • Employees are automatically covered by Palantir’s basic life, AD&D and disability insurance • Commuter benefits • Relocation assistance • Take what you need paid time off, not accrual based • 2 weeks paid time off built into the end of each year (subject to team and business needs) • 10 paid holidays throughout the calendar year • Supportive leave of absence program including time off for military service and medical events • Paid leave for new parents and subsidized back-up care for all parents • Fertility and family building benefits including but not limited to adoption, surrogacy, and preservation • Stipend to help with expenses that come with a new child • Employees can enroll in Palantir’s 401k plan Life at Palantir We want every Palantirian to achieve their best outcomes, that’s why we celebrate individuals’ strengths, skills, and interests, from your first interview to your longterm growth, rather than rely on traditional career ladders. Paying attention to the needs of our community enables us to optimize our opportunities to grow and helps ensure many pathways to success at Palantir. Promoting health and well-being across all areas of Palantirians’ lives is just one of the ways we’re investing in our community. Learn more at Life at Palantir and note that our offerings may vary by region. In keeping consistent with Palantir’s values and culture, we believe employees are “better together” and in-person work affords the opportunity for more creative outcomes. Therefore, we encourage employees to work from our offices to foster connectivity and innovation. Many teams do offer hybrid options (WFH a day or two a week), allowing our employees to strike the right trade-off for their personal productivity. Based on business need, there are a few roles that allow for “Remote” work on an exceptional basis. If you are applying for one of these roles, you must work from the state in which you are employed. If the posting is specified as Onsite, you are required to work from an office. If you want to empower the world's most important institutions, you belong here. Palantir values excellence regardless of background. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer for all, including but not limited to Veterans and those with disabilities. Palantir is committed to making the application and hiring process accessible to everyone and will provide a reasonable accommodation for those living with a disability. If you need an accommodation for the application or hiring process, please reach out and let us know how we can help. Please note that you will never be asked to submit a payment or share financial information to participate in our interview process. If you suspect that you've been contacted by a scammer, we recommend you cease all communication with the individual and consider reporting them to the relevant authorities, such as the US FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

If you would like to understand more about how your personal data will be processed by Palantir, please see our Privacy Policy.

Explore around this job

Field: Technology Sub-niche: Software engineering All jobs at Palantir Technologies Inc. Jobs in California Jobs in Palo Alto, CA Palo Alto city guide California state guide Santa Clara County economy

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About the role

This is a — role in the Technology field (Software engineering) at Palantir Technologies Inc..

We could not match this job title to one occupation in the official wage statistics, so no pay estimate is shown. Pay is not in the source listing; ask the employer for the range and compare in the 240 job niches.

Does the pay work here? (estimate)

Gross salary a year Filing State income tax rate %

Estimate for a wage earner: 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction (IRS), Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45% (+0.9% above $200,000 single / $250,000 married), and a state rate you set; set your own state tax rate. It ignores credits, pre-tax deductions, local taxes and benefits. Sources: IRS: tax year 2026 inflation adjustments · SSA wage base per Federal Register notice 2025-19763.

How to prepare and behave

This is editorial guidance, not information from the employer.

Read the whole description and match your examples to its requirements; use the same words the posting uses where they are true for you.
Research the employer before the interview: what it does, who its customers are and recent news; prepare two or three questions about the work.
Arrive early (or log in early for a video call), dress one step above the daily dress code, and test your camera and audio beforehand.
Answer with short stories: the situation, what you did and the result. Give numbers when you have them and never invent them.
Be honest about gaps; say what you did to learn and how fast you can close them.
Ask about the team, the first 90 days, how success is measured and the schedule; do not open with salary and time off.
When pay comes up, know the market range for the occupation and your lowest acceptable offer before you answer; ask for the full package in writing.
Send a short thank-you message within a day, mentioning one thing you discussed.
Have code, data work or projects you can show, and be ready to think aloud: many technical interviews test how you reason, not only the answer.

Know your rights as a candidate and an employee:

The city

The job is in Palo Alto, CA. Below is what the official statistics say about living and working there.

How Palo Alto compares. Among the 145 largest places in California, Palo Alto is #122 by population, #4 for college degrees (#1 = most), #139 for rent (#1 = cheapest), #7 for household income (#1 = highest). Its county, Santa Clara County, is #1 of 58 counties for average pay ($197,043).

The place in numbers

Palo Alto has 67,237 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 0.2% of the population of California. It covers 24 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 2,796 people per square mile. The median age is 43.6, 15% older than the state median (43.6 against 37.9).

Housing

The median gross rent is $3,484 a month (rent plus utilities), 71% above the state median ($3,484 against $2,036). Over a year that is 18.1% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is above $2 million (the ACS reports $2,000,001 as its highest value, so the true median is higher), which is at least 8.7 times the median household income ($231,101); a ratio above 5 usually means buying is out of reach without savings or a second income. 54.6% of households own their home, about the same as the state average (54.6% against 55.9%).

Work and pay

The San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metropolitan area has 1,134,970 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $84,050 a year, 65% above the national median ($84,050 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are computer and mathematical (149,970 jobs, median $186,320); management (115,110 jobs, median $210,750); business and financial operations (94,210 jobs, median $125,240). The area is most specialised in computer and mathematical (3.9 times) and architecture and engineering (2.5 times), where the share of workers is well above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are management ($210,750) and legal ($195,190). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of Santa Clara County was 4.2%. 62.3% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in Santa Clara County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.

Getting around

Among workers, 44.2% drive alone, 2.0% use public transit, 4.6% walk, 35.4% work from home. 8.2% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 58% below the state average (8.2% against 19.4%). Remote work is more common than in the state as a whole, which widens the set of employers a resident can work for without moving.

People and education

82.3% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 122% above the state share (82.3% against 37.1%). 37.0% of residents were born outside the United States, 37% above the state share (37.0% against 27.0%). The poverty rate is 6.0%, 50% below the state rate (6.0% against 12.0%).

Climate

The warmest month is Aug, averaging 68°F (19.8°C), and the coolest is Jan at 47°F (8.3°C). About 510 mm (20 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Dec is the wettest month (114 mm) and Jul the driest (0 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.

Nearby cities to compare

Closest cities in this guide: Los Altos Hills (2 miles, similar rent); Los Altos (3 miles, similar rent); Mountain View (4 miles, rent 12% lower); East Palo Alto (5 miles, rent 36% lower). Rent differences are against Palo Alto; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.

Full guide to Palo Alto →California guide All jobs in Palo Alto

Official links for Palo Alto

These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.

Where to live

CITY Official statistics Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Places within 50 miles (straight line) of Palo Alto, CA that have a guide, with what living there costs. No pay estimate is shown because the title did not match one occupation.

Sort:

Place ⇅	Distance from the job city ⇅	Median rent ⇅	Median home value ⇅	Median household income ⇅	Commute 45+ min ⇅	Rent as % of occupation pay ⇅	Open jobs there ⇅
Palo Alto, CA	0 mi	$3,484	$2,000,001	$231,101	8.2%	n/a	Jobs
Los Altos Hills, CA	2 mi	$3,501	$2,000,001	$250,001	18.0%	n/a	—
Los Altos, CA	3 mi	$3,501	$2,000,001	$250,001	8.3%	n/a	—
Mountain View, CA	4 mi	$3,062	$1,927,000	$189,917	9.3%	n/a	Jobs
East Palo Alto, CA	5 mi	$2,244	$1,102,600	$113,493	9.7%	n/a	—
Atherton, CA	5 mi	$3,501	$2,000,001	$250,001	7.0%	n/a	—
Menlo Park, CA	6 mi	$3,239	$2,000,001	$210,025	11.5%	n/a	Jobs
Sunnyvale, CA	6 mi	$3,039	$1,801,800	$186,170	9.0%	n/a	Jobs
Cupertino, CA	8 mi	$3,501	$2,000,001	$234,707	9.1%	n/a	Jobs
Redwood City, CA	9 mi	$2,968	$1,801,700	$157,814	10.2%	n/a	Jobs
Newark, CA	10 mi	$2,776	$1,142,800	$169,064	22.2%	n/a	Jobs
San Carlos, CA	10 mi	$2,854	$2,000,001	$237,470	14.9%	n/a	Jobs
Santa Clara, CA	10 mi	$3,016	$1,582,600	$178,958	8.9%	n/a	Jobs
Saratoga, CA	11 mi	$3,501	$2,000,001	$250,001	8.3%	n/a	—
Belmont, CA	12 mi	$2,875	$2,000,001	$205,297	18.6%	n/a	Jobs
Fremont, CA	13 mi	$2,933	$1,403,800	$181,506	23.6%	n/a	Jobs
Foster City, CA	13 mi	$3,501	$1,838,200	$199,143	20.6%	n/a	Jobs
Campbell, CA	13 mi	$2,737	$1,617,000	$145,268	10.4%	n/a	Jobs
Milpitas, CA	14 mi	$3,120	$1,251,700	$178,798	15.2%	n/a	Jobs
San Mateo, CA	15 mi	$3,077	$1,618,700	$153,504	15.8%	n/a	Jobs

Career paths

We could not match this title to one occupation, so here are the other sub-niches in Technology, where your skills may carry over:

Cybersecurity (713) Data, analytics and AI (3366) Cloud, IT and infrastructure (1040) Product management (836)

Distances

CITY Calculation (straight line) Source: U.S. Census Bureau Gazetteer (coordinates) · Data: 2024

How far Palo Alto, CA is from the 20 largest US cities, in straight-line miles (not driving distance). Click a column to sort.

Sort:

From ⇅	Straight-line distance (miles) ⇅	Population of that city ⇅
San Jose, CA	19 mi	990,138
San Francisco, CA	54 mi	830,235
Los Angeles, CA	313 mi	3,857,263
San Diego, CA	425 mi	1,389,526
Phoenix, AZ	624 mi	1,642,323
Seattle, WA	706 mi	754,195
Denver, CO	945 mi	718,877
Oklahoma City, OK	1,372 mi	697,125
Fort Worth, TX	1,433 mi	963,194
San Antonio, TX	1,463 mi	1,479,835
Dallas, TX	1,465 mi	1,307,930
Austin, TX	1,478 mi	979,539
Houston, TX	1,621 mi	2,328,253
Chicago, IL	1,847 mi	2,711,226
Indianapolis, IN	1,938 mi	885,860
Columbus, OH	2,102 mi	914,802
Charlotte, NC	2,287 mi	903,844
Jacksonville, FL	2,355 mi	977,670
Philadelphia, PA	2,512 mi	1,579,706
New York, NY	2,565 mi	8,483,844

Nearby cities with open jobs (within 120 miles)

Sort:

City ⇅	Straight-line distance ⇅	Open jobs ⇅
Sunnyvale, CA	6 mi	83
Redwood City, CA	9 mi	45
Belmont, CA	12 mi	2
Fremont, CA	13 mi	6
Campbell, CA	13 mi	7
Milpitas, CA	14 mi	2
San Jose, CA	19 mi	698
Pleasanton, CA	24 mi	6
Alameda, CA	25 mi	38
Capitola, CA	31 mi	1
San Francisco, CA	54 mi	2,804
Sacramento, CA	89 mi	53

The employer

Palantir Technologies Inc. is the employer in this listing. See all its open jobs here →

We do not hold headcount or revenue for this employer. Check its careers site and, if it is listed on a stock exchange, its public filings (SEC EDGAR search).

What it is like to work at a company (culture, schedules, benefits) is not in the source data, so we do not describe it. Read the description and ask the questions under "How to prepare".

Other open jobs at Palantir Technologies Inc.

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FAQ

What is the Backend Software Engineer - Defense job at Palantir Technologies Inc.?

A private-sector role in technology (software engineering) listed 623 days ago. The full description is on this page and on the employer's page.

Where is this job?

Palo Alto, CA.

How do I apply?

Use the "View this job and apply on the employer's page" button. AtiveSite does not receive applications.

How much does it pay?

The listing does not publish pay, and we could not match the title to one official occupation.

What is the cost of living there?

Median rent in Palo Alto is $3,484 a month and median household income $231,101 (ACS 2020–2024).

How old is this listing?

It was posted on 2025-02-24 (623 days ago). Jobs older than 90 days are not shown.

Are there similar jobs?

Yes: browse software engineering jobs in California.

Sources and terms

Job data: Palantir Technologies Inc. careers page public feed (listing dated 2025-02-24). The job disappears from this site when it disappears from the source.
Wages and projections: BLS OEWS (May 2025) and Employment Projections 2025–35.
City and county figures: Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024, BEA, BLS QCEW and LAUS, NASA POWER climatology; distances from Census Gazetteer coordinates.

AtiveSite is not affiliated with or endorsed by the employer or any government agency, and does not process applications. Verify every detail with the employer before acting.

Sources

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