Your Impact at LILA
We’re looking for a Principal Security Architect to lead the security architecture for cloud applications operating at FedRAMP IL5 and IL6, while also shaping enterprise-wide security architecture and engineering.
This is a hands-on leadership role—your work will directly enable secure product delivery at speed. You’ll lead the design, implementation, and authorization of FedRAMP IL5/IL6 systems, then scale that success by building reusable security platforms, patterns, and practices across the organization.
What You'll Be Building
You will define and deliver secure cloud architectures that meet the highest federal standards while staying practical and engineer friendly. Your designs will become the foundation for multiple systems and scale across teams and environments.
FedRAMP IL5 / IL6 security architectures co-owned with Application Architects and applied across multiple systems
Deployable security designs grounded in NIST 800-53 Rev. 5, DoD Cloud SRG (IL5/IL6), and FedRAMP
Core security building blocks, including:
- Identity, credential, and access management (ICAM)
- Network segmentation, trust boundaries, and secure data flows
- Encryption, key management, and secrets handling
Zero Trust architecture (NIST 800-207) implemented in production—not just documented
Reusable security platforms and patterns, including:
- IAM and access control
- Secrets management and key lifecycle
- Logging, monitoring, and detection
- Secure CI/CD and Infrastructure as Code
Enterprise reference architectures supporting both FedRAMP and non-FedRAMP systems
Compliance-aware designs that minimize authorization scope through control inheritance, reuse, and standardization
Automated compliance evidence pipelines that reduce manual effort and improve audit readiness
Security-by-design integrations embedded into product engineering and cloud infrastructure
Architectural support for resilience and response, including threat modeling, risk assessment, incident response, and forensic readiness
What Success Looks Like
- Security controls are designed once and reused across applications and platforms
- Compliance evidence is automated, repeatable, and scalable
- Engineering teams adopt security patterns naturally, without friction
- Security architecture accelerates delivery instead of slowing it down
This role is for someone who wants to build durable, reusable security architecture that scales beyond one system—and enables high-assurance cloud delivery at speed. This is not a policy-only or governance-only position.
What You’ll Need to Succeed
You bring deep, hands-on experience designing and delivering secure cloud systems in highly regulated environments. You’re comfortable translating complex requirements into scalable architecture and guiding teams through delivery.
8+ years in cybersecurity, security architecture, or security engineering
Proven, hands-on delivery of FedRAMP IL5 and/or IL6 systems, from design through authorization
Strong working knowledge of:
- NIST 800-53 Rev. 5
- DoD Cloud Computing SRG (IL5/IL6)
- FedRAMP authorization and ATO processes
Cloud security architecture experience in AWS GovCloud
Experience securing cloud-native platforms, including:
- Container orchestration (EKS, AKS, OpenShift)
- CI/CD pipelines and Infrastructure as Code
Ability to explain control intent and risk tradeoffs, not just map requirements to controls
Compensation
We offer competitive base compensation with bonus potential and generous early-stage equity. Your final offer will reflect your background, expertise, and expected impact.
U.S. Benefits. Full-time U.S. employees receive a comprehensive benefits program including medical, dental, and vision coverage; employer-paid life and disability insurance; flexible time off with generous company wide holidays; paid parental leave; an educational assistance program; commuter benefits, including bike share memberships for office based employees; and a company subsidized lunch program.
International Benefits. Full-time employees outside the U.S. receive a comprehensive benefits program tailored to their region. USD salary ranges apply only to U.S.-based positions; international salaries are set to local market.
Expected Base Salary Range
$204,000—$310,000 USD
About LILA
Lila Sciences is building Scientific Superintelligence™ to solve humankind's greatest challenges. We believe science is the most inspiring frontier for AI. Rather than hard-coding expert knowledge into tools, LILA builds systems that can learn for themselves.
LILA combines advanced AI models with proprietary AI Science Factory™ instruments into an operating system for science that executes the entire scientific method autonomously, accelerating discovery at unprecedented speed, scale, and impact across medicine, materials, and energy. Learn more at www.lila.ai.
Guided by our core values of truth, trust, curiosity, grit, and velocity, we move with startup speed while tackling problems of historic importance. If this sounds like an environment you'd love to work in, even if you don't meet every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply.
We’re All In
Lila Sciences is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.
Information you provide during your application process will be handled in accordance with our Candidate Privacy Policy.
A Note to Agencies
Lila Sciences does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Lila Sciences or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Lila Science’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Lila Sciences, and Lila Sciences will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.