DevOps Engineer

About Subsense
Subsense is a deep-tech company developing the world’s first non-surgical, bidirectional brain-computer interface powered by plasmonic and magnetoelectric nanoparticles. Our mission is to unlock direct communication between the human brain and AI - starting with medical applications such as stroke recovery and moving toward cognitive enhancement for healthy users. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Subsense brings together leading scientists and engineers to redefine the future of human–machine interaction.
The Opportunity
We're looking for a DevOps and Systems Engineer to own our core infrastructure, keep our lab and corporate systems running reliably, and lay a strong security foundation as we grow. This is a hands-on, high-ownership role that sits at the intersection of IT systems administration, R&D, cloud infrastructure, lab networking, and security. You'll work closely with R&D, Operations, and leadership across our Palo Alto HQ and Mountain View lab.
This role is ideal for someone who thrives in early-stage environments, takes pride in clean and stable systems, and can operate independently without a large IT team behind them.
Key Responsibilities

• Administer and maintain our on-premise Linux research server (Nano), including user management, SSH access, permissions, RAID configuration, logging, and troubleshooting
• Monitor system health, investigate failures, and resolve issues proactively
• Support lab and corporate users across two locations with day-to-day IT needs
• Set up and maintain our AWS environment, including access controls, storage, networking, and cost management
• Establish consistent, scalable patterns for cloud usage as our team and data volumes grow
• Maintain and improve local network infrastructure across HQ and lab environments
• Support secure connectivity for lab equipment, research systems, and remote access tools (e.g., rclone, SSH, VNC)
• Implement and maintain baseline security practices: identity and access management, endpoint protection, secure provisioning and deprovisioning, and logging
• Support compliance readiness for frameworks relevant to our R&D and medical device roadmap (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, FDA cybersecurity guidance)
• Partner with a cybersecurity on more specialized security initiatives

What You'll Bring

• 4+ years of experience in systems administration, DevOps, or infrastructure engineering
• Hands-on experience administering Linux servers (user management, permissions, storage, system logs, troubleshooting)
• Solid AWS experience (IAM, EC2, S3, VPC, or equivalent)
• Strong understanding of networking fundamentals: LAN/WAN, SSH, DNS, VPN, file sharing protocols
• Comfortable owning systems end-to-end in a small team, without a lot of hand-holding
• Strong communicator who can support non-technical users and partner with scientists and engineers
• Startup mindset — adaptable, resourceful, hands-on, and highly execution-focused
• Experience in a lab, biotech, or research environment

Familiarity with medical device or regulated environment IT requirements
Background in or exposure to security frameworks (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA)
Experience with tools like rclone, NAS/RAID systems, or hybrid cloud-local storage setups
*Subsense is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.*
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.