Job details
About this role
Role overview This is a backend platform engineering role on a fully distributed team that builds reading and audio tools used by a large global user base. The Platform team owns every backend service, including payments, subscriptions, authentication, analytics, text-to-speech pipelines, and external APIs. It is a flat, fast-moving environment where engineers are expected to think strategically, make product decisions, and deliver reliable APIs that delight users. The position is based in or around Burlington, VT, but the team operates 100% remotely with no physical office.
Responsibilities - Design, build, and maintain backend APIs, including a public text-to-speech API and internal services for payments, subscriptions, authentication, and consumption tracking - Continuously improve performance, scalability, and maintainability across the full backend API landscape - Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align backend architecture with overall product strategy and user experience - Support B2B solutions, tailoring backend services to the customization and integration needs of enterprise clients - Make product-level trade-offs about how backend systems should evolve to meet business and scalability requirements
Requirements - Proven professional experience in backend development with TypeScript and Node.js - Hands-on experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and working knowledge of AWS, Azure, or comparable cloud providers - Ability to move efficiently from ideation to implementation, prioritizing work by urgency and impact - Strong written communication skills and comfort working in a fast-paced, async-first, distributed organization
Nice to have - Experience with Docker and containerized deployments - Proficiency running high-availability applications on Kubernetes
Benefits and work setup - 100% distributed team with no office and a strong asynchronous work culture - US-based salary range of $140,000–$200,000 per year plus bonus and equity - High autonomy, with the expectation that anyone can become a leader through consistent technical delivery - Mission-driven work at the intersection of AI and audio, helping people read and learn more effectively - Multi-round technical interview process typically completed within about one week