Backend Engineer - Node, Python & Applied AI

Playground Dev is the software engineering company in Playground Group. We're a tight-knit team in central Stockholm, and we're in a growth phase: expanding across backend, fullstack and AI engineering. This opening is the backend part of that.

Titles matter less to us than what you've built and how you work with others. The distance from idea to production is short here, and we'd like to keep it that way as we grow.

What you'll do

This role is primarily for our in-house team & platform deliveries: group-wide initiatives that several companies in Playground Group depend on. The environments are complex - multiple systems, multiple stakeholders, real data flowing through - and the deliveries matter, which is exactly why we're strengthening the team around them.

All our work is done in teams. You'll be part of a Playground team shipping these platforms together, doing solid backend engineering with a growing slice of applied AI on top.

In practice:

• Build and own backend systems that run in production across the group
• Design APIs, services and data flows in environments with many moving parts
• Work with AI integrations such as LLMs and agents
• Deploy and operate systems in cloud environments
• Contribute to internal products and technical initiatives

Who we're looking for

You're technically heavy and thrive in the backbone of the system. We work a lot with Node.js, TypeScript and Python in multi-cloud environments. Experience with Rust, Go, Java or similar is a big plus.

You write code that holds up in production, and you care about shipping. You share what you know rather than hoarding it.

On the AI side: you're already a strong engineer who wants to go deeper into applied AI. You don't need to know LLMs, agents, RAG or knowledge graphs going in. Curious and hands-on is enough - you'll learn it as part of real deliveries, alongside our AI engineers.

Side projects, open source, weird experiments? Tell us about it.

How we work

Three types of engagements. This role sits mainly in the first two:

• In-house platform deliveries for group-wide initiatives
• Team-based client solutions with shared ownership
• Consulting engineering for clients who need extra technical strength

AI is part of our daily workflow, from delivery process to how we learn and solve problems. We spend real time understanding new tools and learning from each other, and the bar is high.

You won't sit in a narrow box. You'll collaborate with backend, fullstack and AI-focused engineers across deliveries, and put your skills where they create the most value.

Practical details

• Based in central Stockholm
• Fluency in Swedish and English is required. Most client work is in Swedish.
• Some assignments require extended background vetting.
• No visa sponsorship or relocation support. You need an existing, independent and permanent right to work in Sweden.
• The final stage of recruitment includes a background check by a third party