This RFP seeks a vendor to provide comprehensive software engineering and software-defined networking (SDN) platform development services. The selected provider will support the design, development, integration, operation, and ongoing evolution of the Kytos–ng SDN Controller platform, as well as its associated applications used within the AmLight production Research & Education network infrastructure.

Responsibilities include leading the development, enhancement, and lifecycle management of the Kytos–ng SDN platform and related open-source components. The vendor must ensure production readiness, high reliability, and performance, while evolving the platform’s architecture to facilitate programmable forwarding pipelines and vendor-agnostic network orchestration. Additional tasks include designing, implementing, testing, and maintaining network control applications on Kytos–ng for routing, telemetry, automation, and orchestration; reviewing and maintaining production applications for quality and operational reliability; and enhancing telemetry applications integrating in-band telemetry with programmable switching platforms.

The vendor should implement automated testing frameworks—including unit, integration, and system-level tests—support containerized and cloud-native deployment models as appropriate, and leverage AI/LLM-assisted development techniques to improve productivity and automate validation of large-scale network scenarios. Development of stochastic and large-scale testing approaches to ensure controller scalability and resilience is also required.