Software Engineer, Product (Palo Alto)

About the RoleWe are seeking a Staff Software Engineer, Product to help shape and scale the user-facing systems at Pika. In this key role, you will bridge advanced engineering and product experience, taking ownership of the architecture and delivery of Pika’s product features—from intuitive user interfaces and collaboration tools to real-time interactions and generative AI-powered workflows.As a Staff-level engineer, you will lead the design and implementation of robust, user-centric systems that enable millions of users to create and collaborate seamlessly with our AI-powered platform. Your high-impact architectural and product decisions will directly shape the end-user experience. You will also play a critical role in elevating the technical and product bar through architectural proposals, code reviews, technical mentorship, and cross-functional collaboration with product, design, and engineering teams.What You'll DoLead User-Facing Product Engineering: Architect and develop intuitive, performant, and scalable user-facing features and applications for Pika’s web and multi-platform products.Shape Product Experiences: Collaborate closely with product and design teams to deliver features that delight users and solve real problems, ensuring a seamless and accessible creative workflow.Drive End-to-End Projects: Take ownership of product features from ideation and specification through development, launch, and ongoing improvement.Architect Real-Time Collaboration: Build and scale systems that support real-time multi-user interactions, messaging, and live collaboration.Integrate Advanced AI Workflows: Design and optimize product features that harness generative AI (LLMs, models, and agentic workflows) to power creative tools.Champion Technical Excellence: Write and review technical proposals, evaluate technical and product trade-offs, and mentor other engineers to drive best practices and align on great product outcomes.What We're Looking ForExperience: 5+ years of software engineering experience, with 2+ years in senior, product-focused roles building web or mobile products at scale.Product Mindset: Track record of delivering impactful user-facing features, balancing technical rigor with great product intuition.Technical Mastery: Deep proficiency in modern frontend and/or backend technologies (React, TypeScript, Node.js, Go, or similar) and scalable architecture patterns.Systems & Platform Knowledge: Strong understanding of distributed systems, cloud infrastructure (AWS/GCP), and building reliable, high-traffic services.User-Centric Focus: Passion for delivering polished, accessible, and responsive end-user experiences; comfortable collaborating with designers and product managers.Ownership & Initiative: Proven ability to lead projects independently, identify product bottlenecks, and ship high-impact solutions with little direction.Communication & Collaboration: Strong written and verbal communication; thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative, team-first environment.Nice to HaveExperience with real-time collaboration, creative tools, or media-rich applicationsFamiliarity with generative AI and agentic product patternsExperience at fast-growing startups or in ambiguous, high-velocity environmentsCompetitive coding, hackathon, or open-source experienceWhat We OfferCompetitive salary in the AI industryEquity in a rapidly growing startup shaping the future of AI and creativityComprehensive health benefits, monthly stipends, and company retreatsA supportive, collaborative office culture—we’re all building and launching togetherAbout PikaAt Pika, our mission is to make video creation seamless, intuitive, and accessible to everyone. We envision a world where everyone can express their creativity through video, empowered by the latest advances in AI. Our culture values sharp intellect, product thinking, efficient collaboration, and collective impact. We're based in Palo Alto, CA, working from the office 3-5 days a week.Compensation Range: $250K - $350KLocationPalo Alto HQEmployment TypeFull timeLocation TypeOn-siteDepartmentEngineeringCompensationbase salary $250K – $350K