PlanetScale
via Greenhouse
Software Engineer - Sharded Postgres (Neki)
Posted 417 days ago, which is unusual. The employer's own board was still carrying it when we last read it, 2 hours ago.
This is the employer's own posting, not a copy on a job board.
What we know
Is it still open?
Confirmed still open
Last checked 3h ago — checked against the employer's own applicant tracking system, which is the company answering directly.
We re-read the employer's own applicant tracking system and the posting was still there. That is the company answering directly.
How old is it?
Posted 417d ago
The date the source published, not the day we noticed it (2025-07-24). Last seen at its source 2h ago.
Is it remote?
San Francisco Bay Area or Remote
That is the location the employer filed this posting under. Quoted as written — we do not re-word the source's own location.
Who may apply?
San Francisco, Bay Area
The description states no restriction of its own. This is the source's own tag.
Pay
$120k–290k/yr
Read out of the job description by us, not from a structured field. Shown in the posting's own currency and period; we never convert.
Skills named in the ad
Recognised terms only, from a fixed vocabulary — this is what CV matching compares against.
Carried by 1 source
-
greenhouse employer's own board first seen 11d ago · last seen 2h ago
The listing
PlanetScale is growing rapidly and reinventing the database space. The PlanetScale platform offers both PostgresQL and Vitess clusters. Vitess is an open-source database clustering system for horizontal scaling of MySQL, enables businesses to efficiently handle large-scale data workloads — without sacrificing developer experience. We're bringing the same scaling power to PostgreSQL with Neki, our sharded PostgreSQL product, and we're looking for Software Engineers to come help build it from scratch.
Our customers entrust us with what is often their most precious digital asset, their data, so the stakes couldn't be higher. We're looking for a Software Engineer to join our core engineering team and help us build the next generation of database infrastructure.
What's the job to be done?
- You will work on building the best solution for sharded Postgres, a project we're calling Neki: https://www.neki.dev/
- You will design and build critical systems that power PlanetScale's database platform, serving millions of queries per second for some of the world's largest applications.
- You will collaborate with a team of expert engineers to solve complex distributed systems challenges.
- You will work independently to solve engineering and business problems with little direction and high autonomy.
- You will work directly with customers to understand their needs and translate them into robust technical solutions.
These attributes best describe you…
- You are passionate about building high-quality, scalable systems and take pride in writing clean, maintainable code.
- You have strong experience with distributed systems, databases, and performance optimization.
- You are comfortable working with large codebases and can quickly understand and contribute to complex systems.
- You thrive in a collaborative environment and enjoy mentoring junior engineers.
- You have excellent problem-solving skills and can debug complex issues across multiple systems.
- You are self-motivated and can work independently with minimal guidance while making sound technical decisions.
What you will need
- 5+ years of software engineering experience with a focus on backend systems, database engines, query planners, etc.
- Strong proficiency in Go, with experience in other languages like Python or C++
- Experience with not just operating, but developing PostgreSQL, MySQL or other databases
- Experience building and operating distributed systems at scale
What else will help you be successful
- Experience with database internals, query optimization, or distributed consensus algorithms
- Contributions to open-source projects, especially in the database or infrastructure space
- Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure)
- Knowledge of monitoring, observability, and debugging tools
- Previous experience at a high-growth technology company
Why PlanetScale
We're redefining how high-growth companies manage data at scale—and we work with some of the most exciting brands in gaming, consumer tech, and B2B SaaS. As a Software Engineer, you'll be at the core of building the platform that powers world-class apps used by hundreds of millions of users worldwide. PlanetScale is a profitable company with a philosophy centered around building small teams of p99 individuals and is recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in America.
At PlanetScale we believe in supporting people to do their best work and thrive no matter the location. Our mission is to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive company. We strive to build an inclusive environment where all people feel that they are equally respected and valued, whether they are a candidate or an employee. We welcome applicants of any educational background, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, citizenship, socioeconomic status, disability, pregnancy status, and veteran status.
If you have a disability, please let us know if there's any way we can make the interview process better for you; we're happy to accommodate!
Total Compensation and Pay Transparency
An employee's total compensation consists of base salary + variable comp where appropriate + benefits + equity. A member of our Talent Acquisition team will be happy to answer any further questions when we engage with you to begin the interview process.
Base salary range: $120,000 - $290,000 USD