Senior Software Engineer, Backend
Content + Source + Freshness • 18 Dec 2025 • 95% confidence
Offer value
High value due to a competitive salary range, opportunities in cutting-edge AI technologies, and a strong emphasis on continuous improvement within engineering processes.
- Competitive salary: $160K–$200K/year
- Opportunity to work on large-scale AI projects
- Strong emphasis on professional development and innovation
- High experience requirement (7+ years)
Pros
- Competitive salary between $160K and $200K annually which is attractive in the software engineering sector.
- Opportunity to work specifically on large-scale distributed systems, an area of increasing importance in tech.
- A supportive environment for professional development with potential impact on AI technology advancements.
Cons
- Onsite requirement may deter remote work candidates.
- Requires a significant amount of experience (7+ years), limiting entry-level opportunities.
- Potentially high pressure due to the nature of large-scale system design.
Who it's for
Senior / Lead • Onsite
Good fit
- Senior software engineers with backend experience
- Candidates interested in distributed systems and AI technology
- Professionals looking to advance in their engineering careers
Not recommended for
- Less experienced developers or those seeking work-life balance with remote options
- Individuals not comfortable with high-skill technical challenges
- Managers or non-technical candidates
Motivation fit
Key skills
About the job
Location
Bellevue, WA
Employment Type
Full time
Department
Engineering
Compensation
- $160K – $200K • Offers Equity
Role
We are seeking a talented Senior Software Engineer to join us as part of our core engineering team. In this role, you will be in the heart of our mission and responsible for designing and building our next generation of ProRata’s large-scale distributed web crawling infrastructure. This is a high-impact role that is perfect for someone who thrives on solving complex systems problems and continuously improving performance.
Responsibilities
Design and develop high-scale, fault-tolerant crawler systems that ingest and process massive amounts of web data.
Own the full lifecycle of crawler components — from architecture and design to deployment, monitoring, and continuous optimization.
Collaborate with other engineering teams to ensure seamless integration of crawlers within broader ecosystem.
Iterate rapidly to enhance system performance, scalability, and reliability through data-driven experimentation.
Build automation agents for post crawl verifications.
Implement observability across crawler services using OpenTelemetry and modern monitoring tools to ensure system transparency and health.
Champion best practices in distributed systems design, code quality, and operational excellence.
Qualifications
7+ years of experience in backend development, with strong proficiency in Java.
Solid understanding of data structures, algorithms, and system design fundamentals.
Experience with relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL).
Hands-on experience with NoSQL databases (e.g., MongoDB).
Practical knowledge of Docker and an understanding of Kubernetes or container orchestration.
Proven track record of building and scaling large distributed or data-intensive systems.
Familiarity with OpenTelemetry or similar frameworks for tracing, metrics, and logging.
Experience with Apache Storm or other real-time processing systems is a plus.
Prior experience developing or maintaining large-scale web crawlers is highly desirable.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with ClickHouse for large-scale analytical workloads.
Familiarity with message queues (Kafka, RabbitMQ) or distributed task schedulers.
Experience with cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or Azure).
Exposure to asynchronous or event-driven architectures.
Work Environment
Location: This position is Onsite. This role is based at our Bellevue WA (or Pasadena, CA) office location, and employees are expected to work on-site during regular business hours.
Compensation
The compensation for this position will be competitive and commensurate with experience. The estimated salary range for this role is 160,000 - 200,000 USD.
What We Offer
Opportunity to work at the forefront of AI technology
Collaborative and innovative work environment
Competitive salary and benefits package
Professional development and growth opportunities
Chance to make a significant impact on the company's success
Equal Employment Opportunity
ProRata is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All employment decisions are made based on qualifications, merit, and business needs.
California Specific Notices
At-Will Employment: Employment at ProrataAI is at-will. This means that either the employee or the employer may terminate employment at any time, with or without cause or prior notice.
Salary Disclosure: In compliance with California law, salary information is provided to ensure transparency and fairness.
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA): ProrataAI complies with the CCPA. Personal information collected during the recruitment process will be used for employment purposes only.
*This open position is not eligible for Company sponsorship of a visa that would require a new H-1B visa petition that is subject to the $100,000 payment requirement announced in the Presidential Proclamation titled “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” dated September 19, 2025 (or any extensions or modifications of the Proclamation).
Compensation Range: $160K - $200K
