Staff Software Engineer, Big Data Storage

Pinterest; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 177,000 - 365,000; Full time

Job summary

Pinterest is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to help build the next generation of Pinterest's big data storage platform. You will design and implement highly scalable storage systems for our data lake and collaborate with data, ML/AI, analytics, and infrastructure teams.

You will lead complex storage initiatives, contribute to open source projects such as Apache Iceberg, Spark, and Flink, and shape the long-term direction for reliable, efficient data storage at exabyte scale.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience designing and building large-scale production distributed systems.
• Experience designing scalable storage, metadata, or data lake infrastructure.
• Experience with large-scale ML/AI or analytics workloads and high-throughput data access.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and optimize Pinterest's exabyte-scale data lake storage platform.
• Lead complex data lake storage and metadata projects from architecture to execution.
• Collaborate with stakeholders across the organization to design storage and metadata technologies for data/ML/AI.
• Build storage capabilities supporting large-scale ML/AI workloads, including schema evolution and backfills.
• Shape the long-term technical direction for scalable, reliable big data storage systems.

Skills

Distributed systems

Technical leadership

Collaboration

Java/Scala/Python

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science

Tools

Apache Iceberg

Spark

Flink

Presto/Trino

Hive

Job description

About Pinterest:

Millions of people around the world come to our platform to find creative ideas, dream about new possibilities and plan for memories that will last a lifetime. At Pinterest, we're on a mission to bring everyone the inspiration to create a life they love, and that starts with the people behind the product.

Discover a career where you ignite innovation for millions, transform passion into growth opportunities, celebrate each other's unique experiences and embrace theflexibility to do your best work. Creating a career you love? It's Possible.

At Pinterest, AI isn't just a feature, it's a powerful partner that augments our creativity and amplifies our impact, and we're looking for candidates who are excited to be a part of that. To get a complete picture of your experience and abilities, we'll explore your foundational skills and how you collaborate with AI.

Through our interview process, what matters most is that you can always explain your approach, showing us not just what you know, but how you think. You can read more about our AI interview philosophy and how we use AI in our recruiting process here.

We're looking for a Staff Software Engineer to help build the next generation of Pinterest's big data storage platform. You'll work on some of the most exciting big data open source technologies - especially Apache Iceberg - at exabyte scale to power the data infrastructure that helps Pinners discover and do what they love.

As a Staff Software Engineer, you'll serve as a technical leader and hands‑on contributor, designing and building highly scalable storage systems for Pinterest's data lake. You'll partner closely with teams across data, ML/AI, analytics, and infrastructure to evolve our storage and metadata management capabilities, enabling efficient, reliable, and governed access to data at massive scale.

What you'll do:

• Design, implement, and optimize Pinterest's exabyte-scale data lake storage platform.
• Lead complex technical projects and initiatives for data lake storage and metadata management, driving them from architecture through execution.
• Collaborate with stakeholders and partner teams across the organization to design storage and metadata layer technologies that unlock big data and ML/AI innovations.
• Build storage capabilities that efficiently support large‑scale ML/AI workloads, including high-throughput data access, schema evolution, and large-scale column backfills.
• Shape the long-term technical direction for scalable, reliable, and efficient big data storage systems.
• Engage with and contribute to open source communities such as Apache Iceberg, Spark, and Flink to help address Pinterest's scaling challenges.

What we're looking for:

• 8+ years of relevant industry experience designing and building large-scale production distributed systems.
• Strong experience designing and maintaining scalable storage, metadata, or data lake infrastructure.
• Experience building storage capabilities for large-scale ML/AI or analytics workloads, including high-throughput data access, schema evolution, and large-scale column backfills.
• Deep knowledge with building distributed systems, data storage systems, and production infrastructure.
• Experience with big data technologies such as Apache Iceberg, Spark, Flink, Presto/Trino, Hive, or similar systems.
• Proficiency in programming languages like Java, Scala, or Python.
• Proven ability to lead complex technical initiatives and influence architecture across teams.
• Strong collaboration, communication, and problem-solving skills, with a drive for technical excellence and innovation.
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field such as Computer Science, or equivalent experience

In‑Office Requirement Statement:

• We let the type of work you do guide the collaboration style. That means we're not always working in an office, but we continue to gather for key moments of collaboration and connection.
• This role will need to be in the office for in‑person collaboration 1‑2 times/quarter and therefore can be situated anywhere in the country.

Relocation Statement:

• This position is not eligible for relocation assistance. Visit our PinFlex page to learn more about our working model.

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US based applicants only$177,185 - $364,795 USD

Information regarding the culture at Pinterest and benefits available for this position can be found here.

Our Commitment to Inclusion:

Pinterest is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of merit. We want to have the best qualified people in every job. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion or religious creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, status as a protected veteran, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information or characteristics (or those of a family member) or any other consideration made unlawful by applicable federal, state or local laws. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.