---
title: 'Software Engineer at Ethos Life'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/software-engineer-ethos-life-san-francisco-california-42n0y4f32hag'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-07'
---

# Software Engineer at Ethos Life

- **Company:** Ethos Life
- **Location:** San Francisco California, United States
- **Posted:** 2026-07-17
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-07
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/ethoslife/jobs/8635727002

## Job description

## About Ethos

Ethos is a leading life insurance technology company on a mission to protect families by democratizing access to life insurance and empowering agents at scale. With its robust three-sided technology platform, Ethos is transforming the life insurance experience for consumers, agents, and carriers alike. Ethos offers instant, accessible products and a seamless online process that requires no medical exams and just a few health questions; it eliminates traditional barriers, making it easier than ever for everyone to protect their families. Ethos is redefining how life insurance is bought, sold, and underwritten.

## About the Role

As a Software Engineer, you'll work across the stack and be responsible for building scalable platform services and systems. You’ll work closely with other engineers to build and ship key features. We are detail oriented and value clean, modular, and high-performing code. You'll help architect and build our internal standards and frameworks. You are preferably located in San Francisco or willing to relocate. This is a hybrid role with at least 2 days in office and 3 days remote each week.

Duties and Responsibilities:

- Design, build and maintain complex fullstack systems
- Collaborate with other engineers, PMs and non-technical stakeholders to develop and ship features
- Design, build, and maintain our API’s
- Find and solve performance issues
- Participate in code reviews
- Communicate best practices to the team
- Write engineering requirements documents

Qualifications and Skills:

- 2-5 years of relevant experience in a software engineering role
- Full stack engineering experience in Javascript, Typescript, Node or Python
- Experienced with software engineering best practices – design patterns, code reviews, unit and integration testing, etc.
- Ability to communicate technical specifications both verbal and written
- Understanding of security, common attacks and defenses
- Experience shipping features behind an A/B testing or feature flag platform, such as Optimizely
- Ability to succinctly communicate technical specifications both verbal and written
- Command over front-end web technologies such as HTML, CSS and React
- Familiar with optimizing Core Web Vitals and loading speed performance
- Experience building complex architecture systems from the ground up, experience with backend architectural patterns of large, high-scale web applications
- Expert at leveraging agentic coding tools (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot) to accelerate development workflows and improve engineering productivity
- Ability to design clean APIs and understanding of performance issues
- Knowledge of mobile first responsive styling methodologies
- Experience working with third-party lifecycle communication infrastructure, including platforms like Iterable, Twilio, Salesforce, and Regal, to orchestrate multi-channel customer engagement
- Solid CS fundamentals – including data structures and algorithms
- Understanding of security, common attacks and defenses
- Knowledge of build systems configurations and setup - such as Webpack
- Experience with infrastructure, distributed systems, and deploying apps into a high-scale environment with integrated logging and monitoring technologies

## #LI-MK1

The US national base salary range for this full-time position is $96,000 - $169,000. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only and do not include applicable bonus, equity, or benefits.

You can find further details of our US benefits at https://www.ethoslife.com/careers/ Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. At Ethos we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. Pursuant to the SF Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider employment for qualified applicants with arrests and conviction records.

To learn more about what information we collect and how it may be used, please refer to our [California Candidate Privacy Notice](https://res.cloudinary.com/getethos/image/upload/v1684458868/00_CMS/CURRENT_CRPA_Privacy_Notice_for_Job_Applicants_05-23.docx_-_Google_Docs_lr4j43.pdf).

Recruitment Notice: Please be aware of recruitment scams. All legitimate communication from our team will only come from email addresses ending in @ethos.com or @getethos.com.

We will never ask for payment, banking details, or sensitive personal information during the hiring process. If you are contacted by someone claiming to represent us from a different email address, please treat it as fraudulent.

## About Ethos Life

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Ethos is a technology company that simplifies and accelerates the process of buying life insurance using AI-driven underwriting and a fully digital, vertically integrated platform.
- **Entity Type**: Public (NASDAQ: LIFE)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2016
- **Founders**: Peter Colis (CEO), Lingke Wang

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Insurance (Insurtech / Life Insurance)
- **Target customers**: B2C (consumers seeking life insurance), B2B (independent agents and brokers), and B2B (carrier partners).
- **Mission or purpose statement**: "To protect families by democratizing access to life insurance and empowering agents at scale." [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)

## Products & Services
- **Term Life Insurance**: Digital-first, fully online application and underwriting, with instant decisions for 95% of applicants. No medical exam required for many policies.
- **Whole Life Insurance**: Permanent life insurance product with a cash value component, offered fully online.
- **Indexed Universal Life (IUL) Insurance**: Flexible premium, permanent life insurance with growth potential tied to a market index.
- **Accumulation IUL**: An IUL product focused on cash value accumulation.
- **Supplemental Health Insurance**: Including Cancer Insurance and other health-related products.
- **Wills & Estate Planning**: A digital service to create wills and estate plans, extending the company's role in long-term family financial planning. [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/)
- **Agent OS**: An all-in-one operating system for independent agents that streamlines quoting, application submission, and policy management, enabling them to sell more policies efficiently. [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Market Cap at IPO price (late 2025) was approximately $1.6B. Currently a public company; market cap fluctuates. Total funding prior to IPO was $606.5M. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ethoslife)
- **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue was **$387.6M** in the latest fiscal year. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ethoslife)
- **Key Metric**: **Over 500,000 policies activated** since inception. As of Sept 30, 2025, over **10,000 active selling agents** on the platform. [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: General Catalyst, Sequoia Capital, Accel Partners, Google Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund, Jay-Z, Kevin Durant, Robert Downey Jr. [job-boards.greenhouse.io](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/ethoslife)
- **Growth Signals**: Revenue grew **60%** (from $160M to $255M) from FY2023 to FY2024. Headcount grew **35.5%** YoY. Expanded product lineup from 1 product in 2019 to 10 by end of 2024. Achieved GAAP profitability in 2023 and has maintained positive net income. Named to CB Insights' Global Insurtech 50 list and BuiltIn's Top 100 Midsize Companies in San Francisco. [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proprietary AI Underwriting Engine**: Ingests up to 250,000 data points per application (prescription history, credit scores, MVRs) to assess risk instantly and individually, leading to 95% of applicants getting a decision in minutes vs. weeks for traditional insurers. [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)
- **Asset-Light, Scalable Model**: Does not take balance sheet risk; partners with carriers for underwriting. This allows rapid scaling and high gross margins (97-98%).
- **Vertically Integrated Tech Stack**: Full-stack, cloud-native platform handles everything from distribution to underwriting, activation, and administration, creating a seamless experience and durable network effects across consumers, agents, and carriers.
- **Strong Network Effects**: As the platform scales and collects more data, the underwriting engine improves, which improves conversion and attracts more agents and carriers, creating a self-reinforcing flywheel.

## Strategic Focus
- **Product Expansion**: Rapidly adding new life insurance and adjacent financial products (IUL, estate planning, supplemental health).
- **Agent & Channel Growth**: Scaling the independent agent channel via Agent OS, while maintaining a strong direct-to-consumer channel.
- **International Expansion**: Operating in 10 countries (including India, Singapore, Canada, Lithuania), with significant engineering and operations hubs in Bangalore, India.
- **Continued AI & Data Science Moat**: Deepening the proprietary underwriting engine's capabilities to further improve conversion, pricing, and risk selection.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Described as having "intellectual rigor," a "bias for impact," and a "one-team, one-dream mentality." Employees are empowered to dream big and execute quickly with minimal red tape. Values include "speak your mind" and "serve our families." [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/careers/)
- **Remote/Hybrid Policy**: "Digital-first" company. Over half of the team is remote across the US. Has offices in San Francisco, Bangalore, and Singapore. Many roles are "Remote US." [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/careers/)
- **Compensation & Benefits**:
    - Top-tier medical, dental, vision insurance.
    - 401(k) plan with company contributions.
    - Generous paid time off + full company holiday schedule.
    - **100% wage replacement** for new parents during parental leave; coverage for family planning and fertility.
    - **Company equity** for all employees. [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/careers/)
- **Impact**: Employees report having "outsized impact and true ownership" over successes, with the chance to "revitalize an industry for good." [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/careers/)
- **Growth Trajectory**: Rapidly growing (35%+ headcount growth), with recent IPO strength and a clear, well-funded path to market leadership in a massive, legacy industry.

## Sources
1. [ethos.com](https://www.ethos.com/)
2. [ethos.com/careers/](https://www.ethos.com/careers/)
3. [job-boards.greenhouse.io](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/ethoslife)
4. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ethoslife)
5. [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1788451/000119312526029993/d901135d424b4.htm)

## Other roles at Ethos Life

- [Senior Life Underwriter](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-life-underwriter-ethos-life-bengaluru-5c5yknpqadpb) — Bengaluru, India
- [Customer Operations Associate](https://feeny.ai/job/customer-operations-associate-ethos-life-bengaluru-fbzzkx6b2fvn) — Bengaluru, India
- [Partnership Support Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/partnership-support-manager-ethos-life-bengaluru-6r3731cmtna8) — Bengaluru, India
- [Customer Operations Associate](https://feeny.ai/job/customer-operations-associate-ethos-life-bengaluru-stsfv6n4sxr2) — Bengaluru, India
- [Staff Business Analyst](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-business-analyst-ethos-life-united-states-qht5q4jv3p5p) — United States
- [Principal Data Analyst](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-data-analyst-ethos-life-bengaluru-988kvdbwtwzb) — Bengaluru, India
- [Sales Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/sales-manager-ethos-life-united-states-pbn7m6mysx9m) — United States
- [Senior Product Manager, Life Insurance Products](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-product-manager-life-insurance-products-ethos-life-united-states-apkmxmx941ma) — United States
- [Recruiting Coordinator](https://feeny.ai/job/recruiting-coordinator-ethos-life-bengaluru-rrspcnh9v3pk) — Bengaluru, India
- [Principal Product Analyst](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-product-analyst-ethos-life-united-states-pw49405e3ery) — United States