Principal Full Stack Engineer

Musical AI; Remote; CAD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A forward-thinking AI company is seeking a Principal Full Stack Engineer to join their team in Canada. You'll drive architectural decisions, mentor developers, and lead the development of scalable solutions at the intersection of AI and music. The role demands a strong background in full-stack development with experience in frameworks like React and Node.js, along with leadership experience in guiding teams. Enjoy a remote-first culture emphasizing flexibility, inclusivity, and creativity, backed by competitive compensation and growth opportunities.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Meaningful equity

Flexible work environment

Qualifications

• 6-10+ years of professional software engineering experience.
• Experience owning complex features end-to-end.
• Background in high-scale data systems or media platforms.

Responsibilities

• Drive architectural decisions for a scalable platform.
• Establish engineering best practices and review processes.
• Build dashboards and implement data analytics.

Skills

Full-stack development

Collaboration

Problem-solving

Mentorship

Tools

React

Node.js

AWS

PostgreSQL

Job description

Who We Are

Founded in 2023 by music industry veteran Matthew Adell, serial startup founder Sean Power, and Machine Learning expert Nicolas Gonzalez Thomas, Musical AI builds technology that makes training on copyrighted content both possible and principled. We have invented verifiable attribution technology that measures the influence of an AI training corpus on generative AI outputs. Our platform includes a licensing layer that connects AI builders with premium copyrighted catalogs under clear terms, so AI companies can move fast in ways that work positively within the entertainment industries.

We partner with AI companies, labels and publishers to make consent, credit and compensation practical at scale. To learn more about us, read our full Manifesto. We are backed by incredible VCs who understand our vision and support us in execution. This is your chance to join from the ground floor, help shape our product, and leave your mark on something that will change the music industry forever.

We’re first-to-market in our category because we move fast, thoughtfully experiment, and balance innovation with practical delivery. We have a big idea and we need a team that can help us get it done. Our values define how we work: innovation, adaptability, accountability, collaboration, urgency, and value creation.

Who We’re Looking For

We’re looking for a curious, collaborative, and impact-driven Principal Full Stack Engineer who wants to build groundbreaking tools at the intersection of AI and music. As an early team member, you’ll be expected to lean on your experience and get your hands dirty. You don’t have to be a music theory expert, but a commitment to making premium AI training accessible is. We’re looking for someone who thrives in collaborative, inclusive teams where we work together to get things done, and who can adapt easily when things change (and in AI, they change often). Our team values shipping, testing, and improving over chasing perfection, and takes pride in learning, experimenting, and building things that make a difference.

We’re remote-first across Canada and come together as a team a minimum of twice a year. All applicants must live and be eligible to work in Canada.

Your Experience

• 6-10+ years of professional software engineering with substantial full-stack product delivery.
• Proven experience owning complex features end-to-end across frontend, backend, and data.
• Background in one or more: high-scale data/real-time systems, media/content platforms, fintech/payments, or B2B marketplaces.
• Experience collaborating with product/design and interfacing with enterprise customers.
• Leadership experience mentoring others, leading designs, and influencing engineering standards.

Your Tool Stack

• Frontend: React 18, Next.js, Tailwind, Framer Motion, data-viz (D3.js/Chart.js)
• Backend: Node.js/Express or Python/FastAPI; GraphQL + REST; WebSockets
• Data: PostgreSQL, MongoDB/DynamoDB; Redis/queue; vector DB (for attribution)
• Cloud: AWS (AppSync, Amplify/Cognito, S3, CloudFront, Lambda/ECS/EKS)
• Platform: Multi-tenant architecture, comprehensive audit logging

What You’ll Be Doing

Technical Leadership

• Drive key architectural decisions for a scalable, multi-tenant platform.
• Establish engineering best practices, code standards, CI/CD, and review processes.
• Mentor developers; lead technical design reviews and interviews.

Core Development (Full-Stack)

• Frontend (React 18/Next.js)
  • Build dashboards for rights holders and AI companies.
  • Implement data analytics and visualization (D3.js/Chart.js or similar).
  • Build responsive UI systems (Tailwind; component libs), with smooth UX (Framer Motion).
  • Integrate auth and session flows (AWS Amplify/Cognito or equivalent).
• Backend (Node.js/Express or Python/FastAPI; GraphQL/REST)
  • Design and implement REST/GraphQL APIs for transactions and data access controls.
  • Build authentication and role-based multi-tenant authorization.
  • Create reporting engines for usage analytics, royalty calculations, and financial reporting.
  • Implement real-time features (WebSockets/subscriptions) for notifications and messaging.
  • Build file flows for audio/metadata upload, download, and secure delivery.

Strategic Planning & Operations

• Translate tech vision into quarterly OKRs, roadmaps, and measurable outcomes.
• Balance feature velocity with tech-debt management, reliability, and cost.
• Make build-vs-buy decisions for vendors/third-party services and cloud components.
• Provide data-driven status to the CEO/execs and participate in product strategy.

Customer, Compliance & Partnerships

• Handle escalations requiring deep technical debugging and solutions.
• Lead security/compliance work: SOC 2, audit logging, data retention, and industry standards.
• Collaborate with Legal/Compliance on regulatory requirements (music/film industry).
• Manage relationships with cloud providers, GPU vendors, and security auditors.

Production Systems & Scale

• Design for millions of assets and real-time attribution at scale.
• Implement security, observability (metrics/logging/tracing), and incident response.
• Optimize performance and cost (including GPU, storage, and data egress).

Who You’ll Work With

• CTO: align on tech vision; transition R&D innovations into production systems.
• Product & Design: prioritize features with clear success metrics and feedback loops.
• Sales/Customer Success: translate enterprise requirements and lead technical escalations.
• Legal/Compliance: ensure security audits and regulatory obligations are met.

Why You’ll Love Working Here

• Part of a first-to-market company shaping the future of music and AI from the earliest stages.
• Work with founders and teammates who care deeply about both art and technology.
• Join a Canadian remote-first team that values flexibility, inclusivity, and creativity.
• Work in a culture that celebrates speed, experimentation, and impact.
• Competitive salary, meaningful equity, and the chance to grow as we grow.

The Interview Process

Step 1: A Google Meet conversation with Nicolas Gonzalez Thomas, CTO and hiring manager, to introduce the role and the company, and to explore your interest in the role, previous experience, and goals.

Step 2: A Google Meet conversation with Nicolas Gonzalez Thomas including a technical assessment. We’ll dive deeper into your previous experience, technical skills, and working style.

Step 3: A Google Meet conversation with Sean Power (CEO) and Matt Adell (COO) and focused on values alignment and the impact you’d like to make at Musical AI.

Step 4: If there is a mutual fit, we’ll move forward with an offer!

Anticipated Start Date: October 2025

Accommodations and Accessibility: In line with Accessibility Standards Canada, Musical AI provides employment accommodation during the recruitment process. Should you require any accommodation, please indicate this on your application and we will work with you to meet your accessibility needs. For any questions, suggestions or required documents regarding accessibility in a different format, please contact us directly. Generative AI is not used as part of our screening, candidate selection, or interviewing process.

Inclusion: In line with the Canadian Human Rights Act, we are committed to building an environment where everyone feels included, valued, and heard. Diversity, inclusion, and belonging are an integral part of building ethical and safe AI technology, and it is our belief that they enable us to reach our goal of building technology that changes the world of music. We strongly encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from gender and sexually diverse communities and/or people with intersectional identities.