Senior Software Engineer - Back-end/Data Pipeline - VenturaOS

Thetradedesk; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 124,900 - 228,900; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive healthcare benefits

401k plan with company match

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Generous vacation and sick leave

Job summary

The Trade Desk is seeking a Data Engineer to join our innovative team in San Jose, California. In this role, you'll design and maintain data pipelines for the Ventura OS project and develop workflows to handle large-scale data effectively. Our ideal candidate thrives in a high-scale environment and is eager to solve complex challenges.

We offer a competitive benefits package and an inclusive culture that values diversity and innovation. If you have extensive experience with data warehousing solutions, data governance frameworks, and big data technologies, we'd love to hear from you.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of software development experience, focusing on data engineering or pipeline development.
• Ability to learn quickly and tackle complex problems with innovative solutions.
• Effective communication skills for technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Design and maintain data pipelines for the Ventura OS project.
• Develop data processing workflows for large-scale data.
• Create APIs to expose secure data services.
• Collaborate and integrate models with data scientists.

Skills

Data warehousing solutions

Data governance and quality frameworks

Machine learning pipelines and MLOps

Content metadata processing

AI-driven content surfacing

Data modeling concepts

Big data technologies

Programming skills in Java, Scala, or Python

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Tools

Apache Spark

Kafka

AWS

GCP

Azure

Kubernetes

Job description

WHO WE ARE:

We're a small, high-impact team building the next-generation TV operating system. Our flexible structure gives engineers direct influence over product direction—an opportunity rarely found in larger companies.

Our innovative approach to the CTV industry optimizes the advertising supply chain, creating better outcomes for advertisers, publishers, and TV viewers alike. As part of our Ventura OS project, we're developing sophisticated backend infrastructure to power our platform, with a strong emphasis on quality at scale.

We believe culture matters. We foster an environment where engineers thrive through collaboration, innovation, and continuous learning. Our teams build cutting‑edge streaming technology that enables advertisers to leverage data for more relevant and effective ad experiences—while improving efficiency across the entire supply chain ecosystem.

WHAT YOU'LL DO:

This role is ideal for someone passionate about streaming, TVOS, or e-commerce data ecosystems, who thrives in high‑scale, data‑intensive environments and enjoys solving complex technical challenges. If you’re looking to shape the future of personalized content delivery and consumer experiences, please read on—we'd love to hear from you!

In addition to the core responsibilities of our backend engineers, you will specifically:

• Be part of a nimble, innovative team where engineering drives the vision. If you're excited about building the future of CTV, we'd love to hear from you.
• Design, build, and maintain data pipelines for processing content catalog data using technologies like Apache Spark for the Ventura OS project
• Develop efficient data processing workflows that can handle large‑scale data with optimal performance
• Create robust APIs that securely expose data services to other parts of our platform
• Collaborate with data scientists to integrate with their models and algorithms in production environments
• Build scalable data integration solutions that connect various data sources and destinations
• Implement monitoring and observability for data pipelines to ensure reliability and performance
• Optimize data storage and retrieval mechanisms for our specific use cases
• Contribute to architectural decisions around data infrastructure
• Work closely with cross‑functional teams to understand business requirements and translate them into technical solutions
• Apply best practices for data engineering, including data quality checks, error handling, and recovery mechanisms

WHO YOU ARE:

One of the best things about being a software engineer at The Trade Desk is the variety of technical opportunities available. We don't expect you to know every technology we use from day one—what matters most is your ability to learn quickly and solve complex problems using the best tools for the job. What you know is less important than how well you adapt, innovate, and think critically.

We're not looking for engineers who have all the answers—we need engineers who can invent answers no one has thought of yet and solve problems that haven't even been defined.

Our culture goes beyond just having fun together (though we do that well, too). We take pride in being trust‑builders, generous givers, scrappy problem solvers, and relentless pursuers of excellence.

You don't have to meet every requirement below, but if you check most of these boxes, you're likely to thrive in this role.

WHAT YOU BRING:

• Extensive experience with data warehousing solutions like Vertica, Snowflake, or Databricks to support large‑scale data operations.
• Strong knowledge of data governance and data quality frameworks to ensure accuracy, consistency, and compliance in data pipelines.
• Hands‑on experience with machine learning pipelines and MLOps, particularly in personalization, content recommendations, ad‑tech solutions, or e‑commerce optimization within streaming or TVOS platforms.
• Expertise in content metadata processing and management, ideally within a streaming, TVOS, or e‑commerce environment.
• Familiarity with entertainment catalog systems, taxonomy structures, and content discovery workflows.
• Prior work on recommendation systems or search technologies, enhancing user experiences through AI‑driven content surfacing.
• Strong ability to communicate effectively across technical and non‑technical stakeholders, ensuring alignment on data strategies and priorities.
• A solid foundation in computer science and engineering fundamentals, enabling you to design scalable, high‑performance systems.
• Deep experience with distributed systems and data processing frameworks, working with large‑scale datasets in a high‑traffic environment.
• Proficiency in one or more programming languages such as Java, Scala, or Python for building and maintaining robust data pipelines.
• Strong expertise in big data technologies such as Apache Spark, Kafka, and other scalable data processing tools.
• Solid understanding of data modeling concepts and experience with both relational and NoSQL database systems.
• Hands‑on experience with cloud platforms like AWS, GCP, or Azure, and containerization technologies such as Kubernetes.
• Proven ability to lead and complete projects with high levels of technical ambiguity while mentoring and contributing to the growth of peers.
• 7+ years of software development experience, with at least 5 years specializing in data engineering or pipeline development.
• A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent industry experience.

The Trade Desk does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firm recruiters. Fees will not be paid in the event a candidate submitted by a recruiter without an agreement in place is hired; such resumes will be deemed the sole property of The Trade Desk. The Trade Desk is an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment will be based on merit, competence, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.

[SF JOBS ONLY] Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

In accordance with various US state laws, the range provided is the Trade Desk's reasonable estimate of the base compensation for this role. The actual amount may differ based on non-discriminatory factors such as experience, knowledge, skills, and location. All employees may be eligible to become The Trade Desk shareholders through eligibility for stock-based compensation grants, which are awarded to employees based on company and individual performance. The Trade Desk also offers other compensation depending on the role such as variable compensation-based incentives and commissions. Plus, expected benefits for this role include comprehensive healthcare (medical, dental, and vision) with premiums paid in full for employees and dependents, retirement benefits such as a 401k plan and company match, short and long-term disability coverage, basic life insurance, well-being benefits, reimbursement for certain tuition expenses, parental leave, sick time of 1 hour per 30 hours worked, vacation time for full-time employees up to 120 hours thru the first year and 160 hours thereafter, and around 13 paid holidays per year. Employees can also purchase The Trade Desk stock at a discount through The Trade Desk's Employee Stock Purchase Plan.

The Trade Desk also offers a competitive benefits package. Click here to learn more.

Note: Interns are not eligible for variable incentive awards such as stock-based compensation, retirement plan, vacation, tuition reimbursement or parental leave.

Base Salary range for this role is $124,900 — $228,900 USD.

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