Software Engineer, Tailscale
Networking, Rust
$181-240k
+ Equity incentive plan and variable commission (for quota-based roles)
More information about location
A zero config VPN for building secure networks
Be an early applicant
A zero config VPN for building secure networks
101-200 employees
Be an early applicant
$181-240k
+ Equity incentive plan and variable commission (for quota-based roles)
More information about location
101-200 employees
Company mission
To remove overhead and complexity from the “long tail” of software and operational problems that people face every day.
Role
Who you are
- Expert-level proficiency in Rust, with a proven track record of building and deploying production-quality software
- Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers in Rust and drive the adoption of Rust best practices
- Experience integrating with foreign systems written in Go, C++ or C
- Significant experience with networking software and diagnosing networking issues
- Deep understanding of networking concepts, including IP addressing, routing, NAT traversal, and VPN technologies
- Experience with distributed systems, particularly those involving real-time communication and high availability
- Familiarity with embedded systems development and real-time operating systems (RTOS) is a plus
- Flexibility to adjust to the dynamic nature of a startup
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
What the job involves
- We’re seeking a highly skilled and motivated Software Engineer to join our growing team. You will work as part of the engineering team to:
- Develop the Tailscale product, contributing to both open-source client code and related backend services, with an emphasis on networking features and optimizations
- Take ownership of the entire product lifecycle, from writing code to product ideation and strategic decision-making
- Work with UX/UI designers and product managers to shape features that enhance networking capabilities
- Because we’re an early-stage and fully remote company, we’re looking for a strongly motivated individual who can help move the product forward. The ability to think on your feet, collaborate with highly technical teams, and comfortably work asynchronously are essential
- Work as part of a team of engineers to design, build, test, and document core networking software components, with a strong emphasis on the Tailscale client for IoT applications
- Lead the design and implementation of networking features in areas such as our control plane, relay infrastructure, and networking protocols, specifically tailored for embedded systems and resource-constrained environments
- Diagnose, troubleshoot, and resolve complex networking issues across different environments, including customer networks and cloud infrastructure
- Exhibit ownership over the running services that comprise Tailscale’s product by building for observability, participating in incident response, and fielding customer support escalations
- Analyze and improve the efficiency, scalability, and stability of networking systems and resources
- Bring a security-first mindset to both design and implementation, ensuring robust and secure networking components
- Provide technical leadership and mentorship to other engineers, fostering a culture of learning and knowledge sharing
- Drive the adoption of Rust best practices within the team, including code reviews, tooling, and testing
- Contribute to the design and architecture of the IoT-specific Tailscale client
- Evaluate and integrate relevant third-party libraries and tools
Our take
The internet is a global phenomenon, but often online activity is unprotected which leaves users vulnerable to hackers on public networks. Additionally certain sites are inaccessible or censored depending on the users location. Use of a VPN enables a secure connection through an encrypted virtual tunnel which also disguises IP addresses. Traditional VPN's tunnel all network traffic through a central gateway server which can affect reliability, and VPN's almost always slow connection speed.
Tailscale is a VPN service built on top of a secure network fabric, which is unlike a traditional VPN provider as it ensures encrypted point-to-point connections by using the open source WireGuard protocol. Tailscale is configured, on average, in a matter of minutes, while other solutions take weeks to fully implement and then require several hours a week of maintenance.
The product has been well received with reviewers agreeing that it is easy to set up and a great tool for developers. The company plan to develop its product further by tackling the complexity of software and confront operational problems that people face daily. The company continues its expansion by empowering small teams to build systems that scale, without scaling overhead.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
81% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 4 rounds)
Apr 2025
$160m
SERIES C
May 2022
$100m
SERIES B
Total funding: $275m
Company benefits
- Flexible (and reasonable) working hours—work/life balance is exceptionally important to us
- Competitive compensation, stock options and 401(k) (for United States-based employees)
- Comprehensive medical/dental/vision benefits, and more
- 4 weeks of paid vacation (standard across the company) + 12 company holidays per year
- An allowance for equipment to help you personalize your workspace
Company HQ
King West Village, Toronto, ON
Leadership
Avery Pennarun
(Co-Founder & CEO)A range of experience in software engineering including Senior Staff Software Engineer at Google Fiber. They co-founded EQL Data in 2009.
David Crawshaw
(Co-Founder & CTO)Previous experience includes working as a Staff Software Engineer at Google before co-founding Tailscale.
David Carney
(Co-Founder)Co-founded Format in 2012, working as a Full Stack Developer, COO and CFO. Also co-founded Form & Method and The Navarra Group.
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