Full Stack PHP Developer - (100% Remote)

Full Stack PHP Developer (100% Remote)Project OverviewFull Stack PHP with CodeIgnighter Development

Vanguard DevOps (www.vanguard-devops.ai) is seeking a highly skilled Full Stack PHP Developer with expertise in the CodeIgniter framework to join our engineering team. In this role, you will be responsible for managing the entire software development lifecycle, from requirements, database design, front-end and back-end development, AI integrations, testing, and deployment for a suite of scientific web applications.

Cutting Edge AI Development - In addition to PHP development, there is the potential to be involved in the development of a new cutting edge Geospatial Artificial Intelligence application, to use satellite technology combined with artificial intelligence to detect whales and other marine mammals from space. The application development involves integrating very high resolution satellite imagery with advanced cloud computing, geospatial analysis, and machine learning to build a scalable, automated detection system of marine mammals. The system will include Python/Django back-end for the automated AI and ML analysis, and a React front-end user interface for Human-in-the-loop (HITL) review and validation of the AI categorized sattelite images, for enhanced training of the LLM.

Core Responsibilities

• PHP development using the CodeIgnitor framework: Design, develop, and maintain scalable web applications using PHP and the CodeIgniter framework.
• Back-End Architecture: Build robust server-side logic, manage database schemas, and optimize SQL (Oracle, PostgreSQL) queries (experience with Python/Django/FastAPI is a major plus).
• Front-End Integration: Develop responsive and interactive user interfaces using HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript (experience with React is a plus).
• API Design: Create and consume RESTful APIs to integrate with third-party services and internal systems.
• Optimization: Identify and fix bottlenecks, improve application speed, and ensure high availability.
• Code Quality: Write clean, well-documented, and testable code while participating in peer code reviews.
• Contextual RAG Interfaces: Design and implement UI components for Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), allowing users to query mission-critical documentation with grounded citations.
• AI-Assisted Data Entry: Architect "Smart Form" features using LLMs to assist users in completing web application data entry form fields, via natural language parsing and intelligent field suggestions.

Required Technical Skills

• BS in Computer Science or scientific field (engineering, physics), or equivalent experience
• 3+ Years proven PHP development experience - Strong proficiency in server-side logic and PHP CodIgnitor web frameworks.
• 2+ Years proven CodeIgniter: Proven experience building and deploying applications within the PHP CodeIgniter framework.
• Proven exprience operating across the full stack — from database schema design and API development to frontend UX implementation and cloud-native infrastructure.
• Hands onAI experience -integrating LLM-powered systems, ML-backed services, and RAG pipelines into production-grade platforms.
• Knowledge of AI UX Best Practices (handling hallucinations, human-in-the-loop validation).
• AI Integration: Experience integrating frontend applications with AI services (Google Vertex AI, OpenAI, or Azure OpenAI)
• JavaScript, HTML5, and CSS3 - Strong Understanding of front-end technologies.
• Strong understanding of Databases and Data Modeling (specifically Oracle, and Postgresql).

Additional Desired Skills

• Full stack Web applications development, using Python, Django and ReactJS.
• Experience with AI in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) - Gemini and Vertex AI
• Experience with Jupyter Notebooks with Python
• Experience with Oracle APEX development (Preferrably Version 24)
• Experience developing Event-driven architectures, asynchronous workflows and notification pipelines (using RabbitMQ, Kafka, GCP Pub/Sub, or similar tools).
• Experience with DevOps, CI/CD, containerization, and deployments
• Experience in "Contract-First" development via OpenAPI specifications
• Experience with agile development processes
• Experience with Jira, and Git
• Excellent teamwork, communication and collaboration skills
• Development of AI, LLM, and ML functionality and integrations, using Python, with Django framework (potentially FastAPI).
• Development of the data ingestion pipeline for AI enabled ingestion, analysis, and categorization of vast amounts of satellite imagery
• Development of React SPAs & AI Integrations: Design a robust, scalable React SPA; implement high-performance UI patterns for real-time AI streaming (Server-Sent Events) to ensure a fluid, responsive user experience.

This position REQUIRES the candidate to be either a U.S. Citizen, or green card holderhaving lived in the U.S. continuously for more than 5 years. (no H1B or H4 visa). - If you do not meet this requirement, do not apply. We cannot hire you for this position.Security Clearance: This position REQUIRES the ability to obtain a Public Trust security clearance