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Salary: USD 248,000 - 310,000 / annual
Airbnb is seeking a Senior Staff Engineer to set the technical direction for backend platforms at the core of its marketplace. You will own the systems that store and serve listing data for Stays, Experiences, and Services, determining searchability, visibility, and bookability of listings. You will also shape how quality is upheld through ML, enforcement, and host guidance.
In this role, you will set multi-year technical strategy and roadmap for Listings and Quality backend systems. You'll partner across Guest & Host, Trust, Infrastructure, and AI Platform teams to define how listings and quality architecture integrates with the broader Airbnb platform. You'll design APIs, data models, and data provenance to safely support AI-assisted features and agents. Key responsibilities include driving platformization and simplification, consolidating duplicated systems, and enabling product teams to build within guardrails. You'll raise the bar on reliability and engineering practices while reducing operational load on critical business systems. You'll engage in hands-on development including design and code reviews, and mentor individual contributors to support their career growth.
Your work will directly influence how Airbnb's core marketplace infrastructure evolves as AI becomes a first-class client of these systems. You'll shape platform contracts between teams and ensure the architecture remains stable, simple, and extensible.
REQUIREMENTS:
- 12+ years of relevant experience in tech; 4+ years in an Architect or Staff Engineer role with ownership of large-scale software systems
- Strong product and platform judgment; understanding of how backend architecture choices impact product velocity
- Track record of setting and delivering multi-year technical vision for core platforms (e.g., service consolidation, major migrations, platformization)
- Deep backend expertise in distributed systems, data modeling, and API design for large-scale business-critical platforms, using Java, Kotlin, or similar languages
- Experience designing APIs and data systems for AI-assisted features and agents, including data provenance, validation, and guardrails
- Excellent engineering skills and strong operational mindset with proven track record of improving reliability and reducing operational load
- Strong cross-organizational communication and influence, including with AI/ML platform teams; demonstrated ability to set platform contracts and align stakeholders
- Proven track record of fostering a culture of Diversity and Belonging
