Staff Backend Engineer (Python)

About the role

We are seeking a Staff Backend Engineer to join a high‑impact Infrastructure team building a real‑time, distributed voice AI system. The role focuses on core Python‑based backend services that handle live audio streams, integrate with third‑party services, and run in a cloud‑native Kubernetes environment.

Key responsibilities

• Own and develop core components of a real‑time distributed backend system using Python and Rust.
• Lead large‑scale initiatives end‑to‑end with minimal guidance.
• Design and implement scalable, reliable backend architecture.
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex production issues in distributed environments.
• Improve system performance, reliability, and development velocity.
• Work with real‑time data streams and audio processing pipelines.
• Collaborate across teams and contribute to technical decision‑making and architecture.

Required profile

• Experience as a Senior, Staff or Principal Engineer, preferably in a startup environment.
• 8+ years of professional Python development experience.
• Strong software design skills and expertise with at least one strongly typed language (e.g., Rust, C++, Go, Swift, Java).
• Deep understanding of networking protocols and operating systems.
• Proven track record delivering and troubleshooting production‑grade cloud‑based distributed systems.
• Experience building and debugging real‑time low‑level systems (kernel, drivers, RTOS).

Required skills

• Python
• Asyncio
• Rust
• C++
• Go
• Swift
• Java
• Networking protocols
• Operating systems
• Python profiling
• Kubernetes
• Helm
• Observability stacks
• LLM prompting
• gRPC
• Open‑source contribution