Staff Software Engineer, Backend

cantina; San Francisco, Los Angeles (CA, CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary and generous company equity

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

42 days of paid time off

Generous parental leave & fertility support

401(k) retirement savings plan

Lifestyle spending account – $500/month

Complimentary lunch and snacks

Job summary

Cantina is looking for a Senior Backend Engineer in San Francisco, California, to design and develop systems that revolutionize user engagement with our AI platform. The ideal candidate will have 5–10 years of experience, strong proficiency in Golang, Node.js, and AWS, along with a collaborative mindset.

The role offers an anticipated annual base salary of $200,000 - $240,000, with additional benefits including extensive paid time off and comprehensive health insurance.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years of professional software engineering experience, particularly in backend and cloud architectures.
• Familiarity with third-party services like Segment, Branch.io, or similar marketing tools.
• Experience with growth-focused projects, optimizing user acquisition and retention.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate closely with product managers and designers to deliver high-quality features.
• Build and enhance AI-powered systems supporting user acquisition and engagement.
• Experiment with new technologies to streamline customer experiences.
• Contribute expertise to evolve team processes and infrastructure.

Skills

Proficiency in Golang

Proficiency in Node.js

Proficiency in Javascript

Proficiency in TypeScript

Experience with Postgres

Experience with AWS

Understanding of microservices architecture

Understanding of RESTful APIs

Strong communication skills

Education

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

Tools

Postgres

AWS (Lambda, DynamoDB, API Gateway, S3)

Job description

About Cantina:

Cantina Labs is a social AI company, developing a suite of advanced real-time models that push the boundaries of expression, personality, and realism. We bring characters to life, transforming how people tell stories, connect, and create. We build and power ecosystems. Cantina, our flagship social AI platform, is just the beginning.

If you're excited about the potential AI has to shape human creativity and social interactions, join us in building the future!

About the Role:

As part of the Backend Engineering team, you'll design, build, and scale systems and services that revolutionize how users engage with our cutting‑edge AI‑powered platform. This role is ideal for a self‑sufficient senior software engineer who thrives in fast‑paced environments and is passionate about driving user acquisition, engagement, and retention.

Your work will have a direct impact on core business outcomes, including customer acquisition, retention, and product scalability.

What you’ll do:

• Collaborate closely with cross‑functional teams, including product managers, designers, and data specialists, to deliver high‑quality, performant, and maintainable features.
• Build and enhance AI‑powered systems supporting user acquisition, onboarding, and engagement.
• Experiment with and implement new technologies to optimize user journeys and streamline customer experiences.
• Gain exposure to the architecture and operations behind one of the fastest‑growing social AI products globally.
• Contribute expertise to help evolve team processes and technical infrastructure, ensuring scalability and reliability.

What you’ll bring:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• 5–10 years of professional software engineering experience, with expertise in backend and cloud architectures.
• Proficiency in Golang, Node.js, Javascript, TypeScript, Postgres, and AWS (Lambda, DynamoDB, API Gateway, S3).
• Solid understanding of software design patterns, microservices architecture, and RESTful APIs.
• Familiarity with third party services like Segment, Branch.io, or similar marketing tools.
• Strong communication skills and a collaborative, team‑oriented mindset.
• Experience with growth‑focused projects, including optimizing user acquisition and retention.

Compensation:

The anticipated annual base salary range for this role is between $200,000 - $240,000. When determining compensation, a number of factors will be considered, including skills, experience, job scope, location, and competitive compensation market data.

Benefits:

• Competitive salary and generous company equity
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance – 99.99% of premiums covered by Cantina
• 42 days of paid time off, including:
  • 15 PTO days
  • 10 sick days
  • 15 company holidays
  • 2 floating holidays
• Generous parental leave & fertility support
• 401(k) retirement savings plan
• Lifestyle spending account – $500/month to use however you’d like
• Complimentary lunch and snacks for in‑office employees
• One Medical membership, and more!