Senior Applied Cryptographer

Welcome to Teranode Group– “We don’t just build products; we create solutions that deliver real-world benefits. We aren’t defined by tech alone; we put outcomes, impact, and trust at the heart of what we do. We aren’t here to disrupt for the sake of disruption; we believe we can help enterprises and governments in their steady evolution.” Since our establishment in 2015, we have been offering software, consulting services, and IP licensing to clients looking to benefit from the security and scalability of the blockchain. We work across several sectors, including iGaming, supply chain, and financial services. Our suite of commercial applications and solutions, ranging from CBDCs to Data Integrity, is supported by an industry-leading patent portfolio of over 4000 patent rights. At Teranode, we are proud to have a team of over 200+ talented individuals spread across three offices. Our people are passionate about blockchain technology and work tirelessly to ensure that our clients receive the best possible solutions to their needs.

Role Overview: The role expects a hands-on expert who designs, analyzes, leverages and implements advanced cryptographic protocols such as zero-knowledge proofs and other privacy-preserving technologies for high-value web 2.0 and web 3.0 use cases. The role will lead end‑to‑end cryptographic projects, from formal security definitions and proofs through prototype design, reference implementation, and collaboration on audits and deployment with engineering teams.

Primary Key Responsibilities:

• Research, design, and innovate cryptographic protocols such as ZK proof systems and post-quantum cryptography based on analysis of existing solutions and implementation.
• Build and maintain high‑assurance implementations of privacy-preserving solutions in mainstream programming languages as well as Bitcoin opcodes.
• Collaborate with protocol, backend, and smart‑contract engineers to integrate cryptographic components into production systems and to review its security.
• Stay current with academic research and industry best practices in applied cryptography and blockchain security and proactively propose improvements to our architecture and roadmap.
• Contribute to establishing key partnerships and collaborations with ZK-specialized research labs and companies.

Secondary Key Responsibilities:

• Contribute to internal and external security reviews, penetration tests, and third‑party audits by defining cryptographic scope, reviewing findings, and recommending mitigations.
• Represent the company in the external community through papers, talks, open-source contributions, or standards working groups where relevant.
• Support BD / product / customer‑facing teams with deep technical explanations of our cryptographic guarantees when needed.

Requirements:

• Advanced degree (MSc or PhD) in Computer Science, Mathematics, Cryptography, or a closely related field, with a focus on privacy-preserving technologies or post-quantum security.
• Several years (typically 5+ years) of applied cryptography or cryptographic engineering experience, including work on blockchain, distributed systems, or high‑assurance security products.
• Deep knowledge of core cryptographic primitives and protocols: Groth16, PLONK, Halo2, STARKs, SNARKs, lattice-based crypto, etc.
• Hands‑on experience with at least some of: zero‑knowledge proofs, SNARKs/STARKs, multi‑party computation, threshold signatures, or Fully Homomorphic Encryption.
• Solid understanding of blockchain fundamentals: consensus mechanisms, smart contracts, ledger model (account, object and UTXO model), Layer 2 / rollups, and Bitcoin scripts.
• Demonstrated track record via shipped systems, open‑source contributions, or published research in cryptography, security, or blockchain venues.

Behaviours and competencies:

• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain complex cryptographic ideas to various types of audience, developers, C-levels, clients, sales and marketing team, and conference audiences.
• Collaborative mindset, comfortable working in cross‑functional teams, and open to constructive review and challenge of designs.
• Passionate learner who keeps up with the fast‑moving fields of cryptography and blockchain and actively shares knowledge with the team.
• Analytical and problem‑solving skills with a rigorous approach to security trade-offs and threat modeling.
• High sense of ownership, accountability, and integrity when working on mission‑critical security components that protect user assets and sensitive data.