About the Position

ZK Proof Engineer

Location

New York; Remote

Employment Type

Full time

Department

Engineering

Compensation

$125K – $250K • Offers Equity

About Us

Axiom is using zero-knowledge proofs to enable new types of verifiable and private software applications, starting with crypto and fintech. We are a small but incredibly strong team backed by the best investors in crypto. We’re looking for exceptional people who are excited to work on challenging and impactful problems in a fast-paced environment. Our office is in NYC and working in person in NY is our strong preference, but we're open to remote candidates as well.

We recently released OpenVM, a performant and modular zkVM framework built for customization and extensibility. OpenVM allows developers to verify the correct execution of arbitrary computer programs in a flexible and performant way. We are building ZK-enabled products using OpenVM and supporting teams building on OpenVM.

The Role

We are looking for a ZK Proof Engineer who will implement and optimize cutting-edge cryptographic code for zero-knowledge proof generation. You will be responsible for building systems to interface between low-level computer systems like the RISC-V ISA, compiler frameworks like LLVM, and database backends and connecting them with cutting-edge zero-knowledge proof systems. The role will involve both optimizing ZK provers and implementing novel ZK circuits. Your work will require making design choices to enable rapid development of secure and efficient systems.

Responsibilities

Implement and optimize cryptographic code for zero-knowledge proof generation
Interface between low-level computer systems, compiler frameworks, and database backends
Optimize ZK provers and implement novel ZK circuits
Make design choices to enable rapid development of secure and efficient systems

Requirements

Strong background in math/cryptography, or strong problem-solving skills and interest in zero-knowledge proofs
Proficiency in Rust, C/C++, or a similarly performant backend language (primarily Rust)
Extremely detail-oriented with a security mindset
Experience working on challenging software projects with an eye for performance
Clear communicator and value collaboration
Strong bias towards action
Extremely strong work ethic

Nice to Have

Experience with compiler frameworks like LLVM or MLIR
Experience with aspects of low-level computer architecture like RISC-V or programming FPGAs or other custom hardware
Experience with database backends, including experience with query planning or low-level query engines
Research experience in mathematics, theoretical computer science, or theoretical physics
Experience with low-level details of Ethereum

We Offer

One of the earliest employees with ownership to make key technical/product decisions
Work on groundbreaking tech with the potential to be a key piece of infrastructure for the crypto industry
Competitive salary with equity
Work with and receive mentorship from an exceptional team

About the Company

Our founders Yi Sun and Jonathan Wang met while studying math at Harvard and have been working on ZK since 2021. Together, they wrote some of the most performant ZK circuits for elliptic curve cryptography and Ethereum data reads before starting Axiom.

Before Axiom, Yi was a professor at UChicago Statistics and did a math PhD at MIT. He was previously an advisor for Gauntlet and worked at an HFT startup from inception to profitable trading. Jonathan published number theory research in top math journals and did a math PhD at UChicago.

The rest of our small but incredibly strong team includes alums of Applied Intuition, Coinbase, Color, Neon, and Google, as well as math / CS PhDs and IMO / IPhO / Codeforces winners. We look forward to working with you!

ZK Proof Engineer

Job description