Backend Software Engineer, Descript
Platform
$160-240k
AI video & podcast editor
Job no longer available
AI video & podcast editor
101-200 employees
Job no longer available
$160-240k
101-200 employees
Company mission
To make it easy for anyone o record, edit, and share any video.
Role
Who you are
- 5+ years of professional backend software engineering experience
- Experience with cloud infrastructure (GCP, AWS), modern data storage systems (S3, GCS, PostgreSQL, Dynamo/Bigtable), Linux, and data infrastructure (Airflow, Beam, Spark)
- Expertise in modern backend languages and technologies, such as Python, Typescript/Node.js, Go, or similar
- Deep understanding of system design principles, performance optimization, and infrastructure automation (e.g., Temporal, Kubernetes, Docker)
- Solid CS fundamentals, including data structures, algorithms, databases (Postgres, BigQuery), and familiarity with monitoring and observability tools (metrics and distributed tracing)
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, along with good judgment in technical decision-making
Desirable
- Experience in AI and ML technologies (Pytorch, CUDA, distributed training)
- Expertise in digital media processing, codecs, and streaming technologies (ffmpeg, WebRTC, HLS, MPEG-DASH)
- Familiarity with GPU profiling, performance tuning, and optimization techniques
- Experience contributing to or engaging with open-source communities
What the job involves
- We are looking for an experienced software engineer to build a best-in-class video editing and streaming platform to power the core editing and AI functionality of the app
- Design, build, and optimize scalable backend infrastructure to process, store, and serve real-time media processing pipelines and AI inference workloads efficiently
- Collaborate closely with Product, AI Research, and Engineering teams to ensure our platform meets the evolving needs of advanced audio and video workflows
- Build cutting edge model training and evaluation infrastructure
- Evaluate, integrate, and optimize third-party AI vendor solutions, collaborating closely with Product Engineering and AI Research teams to enhance our AI capabilities and accelerate feature delivery
- Make high-impact architectural decisions that balance short-term goals with long-term scalability, while mentoring teammates and championing engineering best practices
Our take
The rise of digital content has made video and audio creation more important than ever, but producing polished media can still be quite complex. Descript makes editing accessible to anyone, simplifying recording, editing, and publishing. And its platform empowers over 7M users to bring ideas to life without needing advanced technical skills.
Descript's standout feature is its AI co-editor, Underlord, which lets users create and edit videos just by describing what they want,. It can generate rough cuts, add visuals and B-roll, apply AI effects, and format content for social media. While many creators are still wary of AI in content creation, Descript has built its tools to augment human creativity, giving users control while handling the heavy lifting.
Serving millions of creators and businesses worldwide, Descript keeps innovating with AI features that learn from user input. By combining intuitive tools with responsible AI, the platform is helping content creators work faster and smarter, reshaping video and audio production while keeping the creative vision firmly in human hands.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
30% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 4 rounds)
Oct 2022
$50m
SERIES C
Jan 2021
$30m
SERIES B
Total funding: $100m
Company benefits
- Health: We’ve got you covered with medical, dental, and vision benefits for all employees and their dependents. These include HMO and PPO healthcare plans
- Time off: Paid holidays are a given, but you can also expect flexible time off. Feel comfortable to take the time you need, when you need it.
- Parental leave: New parents receive paid parental leave to spend quality time with their expanding families.
- Home-office stipend: Get your work-from-home setup ready with our home-office stipend.
- Retirement: We offer a variety of retirement plans, including employer matching.
- Free food & refreshments: Come say hey! Visit our office for free lunch, snacks, and drinks.
- Destination off-sites: No matter where you work, you’ll get to know your team. We host two annual gatherings: a company-wide off-site and a team-specific off-site.
Company HQ
Civic Center, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Laura Burkhauser
(CEO)Laura joined Descript in 2023 as a VP of Product and became CEO in 2025. Prior to this, she was a Director of Product Management at Twitter and Rent The Runway.
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