AmazonApplied Scientist, Amazon Cryptographic Libraries
Amazon is hiring an Applied Scientist, Amazon Cryptographic Libraries in Seattle, United States. It pays $143k-$193k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Amazon.
Level's read on this job
- Little AI ●○○○ is how Level rates this applied scientist role: aI is not part of the work.
- Tools and skills the posting cites include Hol Light, Isabelle Hol and C.
- Level classifies it as a junior role.
- Level lists 20,000+ other open roles at Amazon.
AI in this role
Build machine-checked proofs of correctness for cryptographic implementations and develop post-quantum cryptography algorithms.
Key job responsibilities
- Develop and maintain machine-checked proofs of correctness for cryptographic implementations in AWS-LC, working alongside senior scientists. This is the core of the role.
- Specify the functional behavior of low-level cryptographic code (C, assembly) in formal notation and verify it using interactive theorem provers (HOL Light, Isabelle/HOL, or similar).
- Apply formal methods, program analysis, and rigorous testing to raise the assurance bar of a security-critical, widely deployed codebase.
- Contribute to the implementation and optimization of cryptographic algorithms, including post-quantum constructions (ML-KEM, ML-DSA, SLH-DSA), for production use.
- Collaborate with SDEs, security engineers, and partner teams to translate verified implementations into production-grade, FIPS-validated software.
- Grow your expertise through publications, open-source contributions, and engagement with the broader formal-methods and cryptographic research communities.
A day in the life
You take a cryptographic algorithm that needs to be provably correct. Working with a senior scientist or an ARG partner, you write the formal specification of its behavior, develop the proof in an interactive theorem prover, and iterate until the machine checks it end to end. Some days you are debugging a proof obligation that does not discharge; other days you are reading a paper on a new verification technique or helping refine an algorithm implementation so it is both fast and amenable to proof. Your proofs back code that is validated for FIPS and deployed across AWS, so you operate at an assurance bar most scientists never encounter this early in their career.
About the team
ACL owns AWS-LC (Amazon's FIPS-validated libcrypto), the Amazon Corretto Crypto Provider (ACCP), and managed third-party cryptographic libraries, the cryptographic foundation under nearly every AWS service and a growing set of external open-source projects. Applied Scientists on the team own algorithm-level and assembly performance work and partner deeply with Amazon's Automated Reasoning Group on formal verification. The team has senior scientists who actively mentor and collaborate, so an early-career scientist gets both research depth and production-scale reach from day one.
Basic qualifications
- PhD or equivalent research experience
- Experience in any of the following areas: mathematical logic, formal verification, satisfiability solving (eg SAT/SMT), mechanical theorem proving, model checking, or program analysis
Preferred qualifications
- Hands-on experience with an interactive theorem prover (HOL Light, Isabelle/HOL, Lean, Coq, or Verus)
- Experience specifying or verifying low-level software (machine code, C, or assembly)
- Familiarity with cryptographic primitives and their implementations
- Low-level or systems programming experience in C, Rust, or assembly
- Familiarity with post-quantum cryptography (lattice-based, code-based, or hash-based schemes)
Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.
Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.
USA, WA, Seattle - 142,800.00 - 193,200.00 USD annually
How we rate this
Applied Scientist, Amazon Cryptographic Libraries at Amazon rates 0 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Little AI (AI Level 1 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.
Little AI. AI is not part of the work.
- ●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
- ●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
- ●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
- ●○○○ Little AI0 to 39
Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.
Prepare for this job
Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.
Skills and AI tools this role asks for
Also common in applied scientist jobs at this level
Pay
- This job starts at
- $143k
- Typical applied scientist job
- $169k
This posting starts 16% below the typical applied scientist job. See applied scientist jobs
Questions you could be asked
- Tell me about a project where formal verification was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where cryptography was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where applied science was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where algorithm optimization was part of your work. What did you do?
- Tell me about a project where theorem proving was part of your work. What did you do?
Adapt your resume
- List these exact terms on your resume: Formal Verification, Cryptography, Applied Science, Algorithm Optimization, and Theorem Proving. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
- Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
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