Staff Backend Architect — Safety & Moderation (Python)

Discord; California (MO); Hybrid; USD 279,000 - 341,000; Full time

Job summary

Discord is seeking a Staff Software Engineer for the Safety Processing team to lead backend systems that process safety signals and automate content moderation. The role emphasizes Python expertise, architectural leadership, and a proactive adversarial mindset to protect users.

You will guide engineers, collaborate across teams, and help deploy ML/AI models for safer content decisions at scale, in a US-based hybrid setup with potential remote options.

Qualifications

• Experience building and maintaining backend systems in Python.
• Strong system design and architecture skills for large-scale projects.
• Ability to lead workstreams and guide engineers through implementation.
• Experience in domains requiring trust, safety, security, or privacy.
• Experience being on a 24/7 on-call rotation for production systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead, design, and build scalable backend systems for processing safety-related signals, primarily using Python.
• Guide and mentor the team through architectural challenges to ensure long-term scalability.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to build tools for content moderation and compliance.
• Implement and enhance ML/AI models and automation for content moderation decisions.
• Address safety challenges with an adversarial mindset and drive impactful outcomes.

Skills

Python

Architectural Leadership

Leadership in Execution

Adversarial Mindset

On-Call Experience

Tools

TypeScript

JavaScript/React

Rust

Job description

Discord is seeking a Staff Software Engineer for the Safety Processing team to lead backend systems that process safety signals and automate content moderation. The role emphasizes Python expertise, architectural leadership, and a proactive adversarial mindset to protect users.

You will guide engineers, collaborate across teams, and help deploy ML/AI models for safer content decisions at scale, in a US-based hybrid setup with potential remote options.