Staff Software Engineer, Big Data Storage

Pinterest is a platform that helps people discover creative ideas and plan meaningful experiences. The company is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to build and lead the evolution of its exabyte-scale big data storage platform, including data lake storage and metadata management systems. The role partners with data, ML/AI, analytics, and infrastructure teams to enable scalable, reliable, and governed data access.

Responsibilities:

• 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

Requirements:

• 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