Media Software Engineer, Speech (All Levels)

The media team at Cantina is creating an advanced platform for real-time and streaming media, focusing on high-performance audio and video processing. This Software Engineer will enhance and extend the real-time Cantina media platform, enabling new voice and video interactions for users with friends and AI bots. Responsibilities include improving WebRTC-based frameworks for iOS, Android, and web clients, analyzing system performance, and collaborating on new features and API definitions.

Must Have

• BS or MS in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related field; or equivalent experience.
• Experience with C or C++.
• Strong computer science fundamentals, including familiarity with data structures and concurrent / multithreaded programming.
• Exposure to system programming concepts, including network protocols; memory management; and distributed systems fundamentals.
• Object-oriented programming and design skills.

Good to Have

• Previous experience with WebRTC, streaming protocols, or other media-related technologies.
• Familiarity with audio or video processing techniques and algorithms.
• Experience creating backend server infrastructure.
• Experience developing software for iOS and Android.
• Familiarity with building services using Node.js.
• Familiarity with artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, particularly in relation to speech recognition and synthesis.

Perks & Benefits

• Health Care — 99% of premiums for medical, vision, dental are fully paid for by Cantina, plus One Medical membership.
• Monthly Wellness Stipend — $500/month to use on whatever you’d like!
• Rest and Recharge — 15 PTO days per year, 10 sick days, all Federal holidays, and 2 floating holidays.
• 401(K) — Eligible to participate on day one of employment.
• Parental Leave & Fertility Support
• Competitive Salary & Equity
• Lunch and snacks provided for in-office employees.
• WFH equipment provided for full-time hybrid/remote employees.

Department

Engineering

This role is open to engineers from new grad to senior levels; scope and title will match experience.

A bit about Cantina:

Cantina, founded by Sean Parker, is an invite only playground that puts AI into the hands of creators and allows them to bring any idea to life as a social bot that can be experienced with friends directly in the Cantina and also shared across the internet.

It's the first place where people can create, explore, and chat live with personality-driven AI bots together with their friends. People can choose from Cantina’s collection of thousands of unique bots, or build awesome AI bots from scratch with just a few prompts.

While a lot of AI focuses on improving productivity and efficiency, we believe our AI bots will drive the future of entertainment on the internet and we’re excited about the creative potential they will unlock for everyone.

Cantina is building a new kind of social AI where people can not only choose their own adventures, but make their own adventures. Create, share, and set AI bots free.

A bit about the role:

The media team at Cantina is creating one of the most advanced platforms for real-time and streaming media in the world. We're passionate about building high-performance, high-quality software and services, with a mandate that covers everything from globally distributed infrastructure to optimized device-level audio and video processing frameworks. We are looking for engineers who are excited about working with an exceptional team on challenging problems.

We're looking for an enthusiastic Software Engineer to help us provide a compelling experience for users who want to chat with friends and AI-powered bots. In this role, you will extend and improve the audio and video infrastructure that is at the heart of enabling real-time interactions in the Cantina app.

A bit about the work:

• Enhance and extend the real-time Cantina media platform.
• Enable new ways for users to interact with their friends and AI bots through voice and video by implementing new features and capabilities.
• Improve and build on the custom, WebRTC-based frameworks we use to provide media services for iOS, Android, and web clients.
• Collect and analyze metrics relating to system performance and user behavior.
• Participate in detailed and constructive design and code reviews.
• Collaborate with other members of the team to deliver new features and enhancements on a regular basis.
• Work with application development teams to define APIs they can use to integrate with the media stack.

A bit about you:

We welcome applicants across a wide range of experience levels, from new graduates to senior engineers. Responsibilities and leveling will be tailored to match the candidate’s background.

Minimum Qualifications:

• BS or MS in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related field; or equivalent experience.
• Excellent communications skills.
• Experience with C or C++.
• Strong computer science fundamentals, including familiarity with data structures and concurrent / multithreaded programming.
• Exposure to system programming concepts, including network protocols; memory management; and distributed systems fundamentals.
• Object-oriented programming and design skills.
• Interest in solving challenging, subtle engineering problems.

Preferred Qualifications:

These are not required, but will help you hit the ground running.

• Previous experience with WebRTC, streaming protocols, or other media-related technologies.
• Familiarity with audio or video processing techniques and algorithms.
• Experience creating backend server infrastructure.
• Experience developing software for iOS and and Android.
• Familiarity with building services using Node.js.
• Familiarity with artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, particularly in relation to speech recognition and synthesis.

Location:

We have offices located in Sunnyvale, CA and Brooklyn, NY. While we offer fully remote and hybrid employment opportunities, our Media Engineering team strongly desires candidates to be available (or willing to relocate) to work in the Bay Area. For reference, 95% of the Media Engineering team works from the Bay Area.

Pay Equity:

In compliance with Pay Transparency laws, the base salary range for this role is between $120,000-$180,000. When determining compensation, a number of factors will be considered, including skills, experience, job scope, location, and competitive compensation market data.

Benefits:

• Health Care — 99% of premiums for medical, vision, dental are fully paid for by Cantina, plus One Medical membership.
• Monthly Wellness Stipend — $500/month to use on whatever you’d like!
• Rest and Recharge — 15 PTO days per year, 10 sick days, all Federal holidays, and 2 floating holidays.
• 401(K) — Eligible to participate on day one of employment.
• Parental Leave & Fertility Support
• Competitive Salary & Equity
• Lunch and snacks provided for in-office employees.
• WFH equipment provided for full-time hybrid/remote employees.

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