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Staff Software Engineer, Backend

241k – 284kNew York, NYHybrid7+ YOE
Summary

Staff Backend Engineer leading architecture and technical direction for AI-powered products. Owns system design, mentors engineers, and builds proof-of-concepts in Kotlin on AWS/Kubernetes.

About the role

What You’ll Do

  • Lead technical planning, system architecture, scaling our AI powered products and 0-to-1 product builds, weighing long-term tradeoffs with precision
  • Write high-quality code and rapidly build proof-of-concepts to validate architecture options and tackle the team's most complex technical challenges
  • Act as a technical mentor and accelerator for backend engineers on the team, proactively identifying systemic technical debt, resolving blockers, and raising the bar for engineering excellence
  • Partner closely with Product, Design, and Engineering leadership to turn ambiguous business goals into clear, well-architected initiatives, keeping a healthy backlog of forward-looking work
  • Embed cutting-edge AI workflows (e.g., Claude Code, GitHub Copilot) into your daily development practices, helping shape how our engineering organization leverages AI effectively and responsibly

What We’re Looking For

  • 7+ years of professional engineering experience, with a strong focus on web, and a track record of leading high-impact technical work
  • Proven experience operating at a senior-to-staff level, with a track record of owning system design and architectural choices for high-scale or high-growth products
  • Strong backend depth with Kotlin (experience with TypeScript is a plus)
  • Solid understanding of modern cloud infrastructure, specifically AWS and Kubernetes
  • Hands-on experience integrating AI models and LLMs into customer-facing products
  • Experience working in early-stage, startup, or high-innovation environments
  • Exceptional communication skills with a natural ability to collaborate closely with PMs, Designers, and other engineering teams
  • Experience with or enthusiasm for AI-assisted development tools (like Claude Code) to maximize engineering velocity

Benefits & Perks

  • Flexible PTO
  • Competitive health & dental insurance options, with premiums partially or fully covered by GG
  • In-person opportunities that are designed to help team members foster collaboration and build community
  • Fertility and adoption benefits via Carrot
  • Generous, fully-paid parental leave policy
  • 401k benefit - employees are eligible to contribute starting day 1 of employment
  • Professional Development - employees receive a yearly stipend for approved learning and educational-related expenses
  • Pre-tax commuter benefits
  • Dependent Care FSA
  • Home office support

The starting base salary for this role in New York is between $241,000-$284,000+ target equity + benefits.

Skills
KotlinTypeScriptAWSKubernetesAI modelsLLMsGitHub CopilotClaude Code
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