Senior Network Automation Engineer

Job description

Vast is developing next-generation space stations and space infrastructure using an incremental, hardware-rich, and low-cost approach. Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches in 2027, followed by additional Haven modules. Additionally, the company recently announced Vast Satellite , a high-power satellite product line leveraging its space station components and the heritage of Haven Demo. Headquartered in Long Beach, California , and with more than 1,000 employees and over a billion dollars in private capital, Vast has built the facilities required to manufacture and operate America’s next space station. The company plans to develop future habitats and systems for the Moon and Mars, dedicated space stations for government partners, and other crewed systems that will unlock the expanding long-term space economy. Vast is looking for a Senior Network Automation Engineer , reporting to the Senior Manager, Network Infrastructure , to drive the modernization of our data center and campus network infrastructure. In this role, you will champion a vendor-agnostic approach, designing robust automation systems to deploy, scale, and lifecycle-manage complex EVPN-VXLAN underlay/overlay fabrics. This position embraces modern software engineering practices, specifically integrating AI-assisted engineering tools (such as AI code copilots, agentic code generation, and Model Context Protocol interfaces) to accelerate script creation, automate validation workflows, and streamline troubleshooting. You will build deterministic, resilient systems while utilizing the latest AI-driven workflows to eliminate operational toil. This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location. Responsibilities: Architect Multi-Vendor Fabric Automation: Develop end-to-end automation pipelines to provision and manage EVPN-VXLAN fabrics (Symmetric/Asymmetric IRB, Multi-Homing, Anycast Gateways) operating across Arista (EOS/AVD) and Juniper (Junos/Apstra) environments Integrate AI Engineering Tools: Maximize team velocity by identifying and integrating AI-accelerated workflows—such as agentic automation testing, AI-assisted playbook generation, and natural-language telemetry querying Maintain Vendor-Agnostic Standards: Enforce a strict "Network as Code" framework by translating platform-specific tasks into open, reusable data models (YAML/JSON/YANG) to prevent vendor lock-in Govern Data Models & SSoT: Own the schema configuration and data definitions for enterprise Single Source of Truth (SSoT) platforms (e.g., NetBox or Nautobot) to map fabric intent to live states Build Continuous Network CI/CD: Incorporate comprehensive validation and dry-run testing suites (e.g., Batfish, pyATS) into GitLab CI/GitHub Actions workflows to review network states automatically prior to deployment Leadership & Code Governance: Act as the primary authority on automation patterns, defining coding standards, establishing guardrails for AI-generated logic, and mentoring junior network developers Minimum Qualifications: Experience: 7–10 years of network engineering experience, with at least 4+ years dedicated to deep network automation and NetDevOps practices EVPN & Fabric Mastery: Deep technical expertise in underlay routing (eBGP, OSPF) and overlay design (EVPN-VXLAN) across enterprise scale data centers and campus networks Deep Platform Familiarity: Engineering experience managing Arista EOS and Juniper Junos systems programmatically Advanced Code Development: Senior-level proficiency in software engineering patterns using Python (utilizing Nornir, Asyncio, NAPALM) or Go to build reliable, internal infrastructure APIs Modern Workflow & AI Tooling: Practical experience using AI code assistants, prompt engineering patterns, or agentic frameworks to safely generate, refactor, and test automation code Declarative Tooling: Expert production-tested experience using Terraform, Ansible, and standard GitOps workflows Preferred Skills & Experience: Advanced Engineering Certifications: High-tier milestones such as Arista ACE, Juniper JNCIE, Cisco CCIE, or DevNet Professional/Expert certifications Telemetry & Programmability: Experience utilizing open streaming telemetry standards (gNMI, gRPC) to monitor and parse real-time fabric state Containerization: Experience containerizing internal networking scripts or microservices via Docker or Kubernetes Additional Requirements: Ability to travel up to 20% of the time Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones Ability to lift up to 25lbs unassisted Specific certifications, as appropriate Pay Range: California $131,000 — $186,000 USD We calibrate level and compensation to the selected candidate's experience and demonstrated capability. We welcome applicants across a range of experience levels to apply. COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non-exempt staff with the ability to cash-out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees. U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.