Who We Are

Hi, we're DuckDuckGo, the online protection company and remote-first team of 300+ on a mission to raise the standard of trust online. Founded in 2008 and profitable since 2014, annual revenue now exceeds $100m USD and millions use our browser on Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android, our search engine, and the DuckDuckGo subscription. Our culture of trust, inclusivity, and empowered project management underpins everything we do, where each team member takes full ownership of their projects, from scoping and execution to postmortem. If you're seeking end-to-end ownership of your work — you've come to the right place!

Your Team and Role

Working on the Backend Functional Team, you'll lead complex projects across key company-wide objectives. Using Perl (Version 5), Go, and Node.js, you’ll write pragmatic, performant, testable code that works consistently, and work on related projects. Recent projects include:

Implementing AI-assisted answers and integrating them into our Search product while maintaining our privacy-first approach
Architecting and delivering the VPN in our Privacy Pro subscription
Implementing sophisticated data processing pipelines that maintain search relevancy

As a Senior Backend Engineer, you'll collaborate remotely with your peers and take responsibility for solving product issues impacting our all-in-one privacy solution, whether large or small. In time, you'll formally mentor other engineers, supporting their career growth and the growth of the Backend Team at DuckDuckGo.

About You

7+ years of professional experience, primarily focused on backend engineering, with demonstrable experience of working on at least one large application.
A fundamental understanding of complex data structures and algorithms — you can develop and apply new solutions and confidently navigate and improve existing code. If you're curious, we mostly use Perl.
Data-driven reasoning and analytical skills and the ability to apply them to make decisions, facilitate stakeholder alignment, and deliver projects in an experiment-oriented environment.
Effective project management skills.
Excellent communication skills. You can validate and communicate your decisions clearly in writing and verbally.
Previous experience leading and mentoring experienced engineers, supporting their career goals, and unlocking their potential.