Staff Backend Software Engineer, Tapestry

X Development; Mountain View (CA); Hybrid; USD 207,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary + equity

Health coverage

Generous PTO

401(k) match

Alphabet-backed environment

Job summary

Tapestry, a Google-affiliate team focusing on the AI-powered grid, seeks a staff backend software engineer to design and implement secure, scalable infrastructure. You will collaborate with engineers, ML experts, and PMs to plan and integrate services at scale.

You will help product teams ship faster and safer by abstracting infrastructure complexity while aligning with energy-tech goals. This role offers hybrid work and the chance to impact the electricity ecosystem globally.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field.
• Strong grasp of algorithms and data structures.
• 10+ years building enterprise-grade software systems.
• Excellent problem-solving in complex/ambiguous situations.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams of engineers, scientists, and PMs.
• Proficient in Java/Kotlin or Go; backend focus.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement robust, end-to-end production software.
• Drive energy-domain product development: data ingestion, storage, services.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams of engineers, scientists, PMs.
• Refine technical requirements with external partners and prototype rapidly.
• Lead architectural decisions and mentor engineers.

Skills

Backend development

Java/Kotlin/Go

Distributed systems

Microservices

Cloud platforms

Data processing

Team collaboration

Problem solving

Mentoring

System design

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/Software Engineering

Tools

REST APIs

gRPC

PostgreSQL/MySQL

Prometheus

Grafana

Cloud SQL (PostgreSQL/MySQL)

Job description

Tapestry is a group within Google working to build the AI-powered electric grid. We are tackling one of the world’s most important infrastructure challenges: helping the energy system become more visible, understandable, reliable, affordable, abundant, and clean.

Originally born at X, Alphabet’s moonshot factory, Tapestry brings together experts in energy, AI, software engineering, and products to build tools that help the electricity ecosystem plan smarter, move faster, and operate more efficiently.

This is a global effort. Tapestry supports partners across the U.S., U.K., Chile, New Zealand, Australia, and Brazil as they work toward a cleaner, more resilient energy future.

Joining Tapestry means doing high-impact work with a multidisciplinary team tackling a problem that matters at global scale. Learn more about our team and our mission here.

About the role

As a staff backend software engineer you will work across the entire Tapestry platform, helping the team design and implement secure, reliable, and scalable infrastructure and services. You will work closely with other software engineers, machine learning experts, power systems domain experts and product managers to plan, coordinate and integrate your work.

This is your dream job if you are passionate about enabling product teams to ship faster, safer and more autonomously by abstracting away infrastructure complexity. Come talk to us if you are excited about energy tech and have strong engineering chops to help push our electric grids towards the future!

How you will make 10X Impact

• Design and implement robust, end to end production-level software to make complex data accessible through enterprise class applications
• Drive technologies and product development for the energy domain, including data ingestion, storage and services from different sources.
• Work effectively with cross-functional teams of engineers, scientists, domain experts and PMs.
• Interface with external partners to refine technical requirements, and rapidly develop prototypes to evaluate feasibility
• Have strong software engineering/system design skills and being excited about solving complex problems at scale and navigating ambiguity

What you should have:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
• Algorithms and Data Structures: Strong grasp of foundational computer science concepts to optimize code performance and memory usage.
• 10+ years of experience building enterprise grade complex software systems and applications.
• Excellent problem solving and ability to navigate complex/ambiguous situations.
• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams of engineers, scientists, domain experts and PMs.
• Proficiency in at least one major backend language (Java/Kotlin or Go Lang preferred).
• Experience with large-scale data processing and modeling, designing backend services and building robust enterprise class applications.
• Extensive experience with microservices architecture, including RESTful APIs, gRPC, event-driven design patterns, and Cloud SQL (PostgreSQL/MySQL).
• Knowledge of logging and monitoring tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, GCP cloud monitoring) to troubleshoot production issues.
• Hands‑on experience with Google Cloud Platform (preferred) or AWS/Azure.
• Demonstrated ability to drive technical strategy and lead large-scale architectural decisions across teams.
• Experience mentoring engineers and fostering a culture of technical excellence.

It’d be great if you also had one or more of these:

• Working knowledge or background in power systems or electric grid technologies.
• Experience with building full‑stack applications including frameworks such as Angular.
• Knowledge of enterprise security architectures, compliance standards and zero‑trust security models.
• Experience working in a Startup/early stage company.

Our values

• Take charge: We take initiative and own outcomes that move the mission forward.
• Transform with purpose: We build solutions that solve real problems and create meaningful impact.
• Be a Tapestry, not a thread: We collaborate across diverse skills and perspectives to achieve more than we can individually.
• Always fine‑tune: We stay curious, seek feedback, and refine our understanding as we learn.
• Stay grounded: We listen openly, value different perspectives, and stay focused on what matters most.

What we offer

A culture that supports growth, ownership, and meaningful impact, along with:

• Competitive salary and equity
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Generous PTO and flexible hybrid work model
• 401(k) with employer contribution
• The ability to work on important real‑world problems within an Alphabet‑backed environment

The US base salary range for this full-time position is $207,000 - $300,000 + bonus + equity + benefits. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process.

Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include bonus, equity, or benefits.

An Equal Opportunity Workplace

At X, we don't just accept difference - we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it for the benefit of our employees, our products and our community. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.