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Discord is used by over 200 million people every month for many different reasons, but there’s one thing that nearly everyone does on our platform: play video games. Over 90% of our users play games, spending a combined 1.5 billion hours playing thousands of unique titles on Discord each month. Discord plays a uniquely important role in the future of gaming. We are focused on making it easier and more fun for people to talk and hang out before, during, and after playing games.
Discord is looking for a Senior Software Engineer to build high-performance, cross-platform client software that powers experiences for 200+ million users worldwide. You'll work on core libraries that run across Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS—writing native code using platform-specific APIs to provide optimal experiences wherever people use Discord.
As a Senior Software Engineer on our A/V Client team, you'll tackle challenging performance problems, design systems that scale across diverse hardware configurations, and build the foundation that enables real-time experiences for millions of concurrent users.
What you'll be doing:
- Build core libraries that power Discord's client experiences across desktop, browser, and mobile platforms (Rust, C++, and Typescript)
- Optimize performance end-to-end across all supported platforms
- Design and run experiments with proper success criteria and statistical rigor to validate improvements
- Debug complex issues across diverse hardware and platform configurations
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ship features that delight millions of users
What you should have:
- 4+ years building large-scale, cross-platform software (Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, or game console development)
- Strong Rust or C++ skills with deep understanding of memory management, multi-threading, and low-level optimization
- Experience building performance-critical applications where milliseconds matter
Bonus points:
- Experience designing experiments that prove (not just suggest) improvements
- Experience with real-time media applications (audio/video, game streaming, etc.)
- Hands-on experience with WebRTC, SDP, SRTP, or DTLS protocols
- Familiarity with audio/video codecs (Opus, H.264, AV1, etc.) and their corresponding quality measurements (POLQA, PSNR, VMAF, etc.)
- Proficiency with CPU, GPU, and memory profiling—you can identify bottlenecks, optimize critical paths, and manage resource constraints effectively
- You have built or contributed to open source projects
Candidates must reside in or be willing to relocate to the San Francisco Bay Area (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma counties). For this role, the hiring manager would like folks to be in the office 1 day a week. Relocation assistance may be available.
The US base salary range for this full-time position is $196,000 to $220,500 + equity + benefits. Our salary ranges are determined by role and level. Within the range, individual pay is determined by additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include equity, or benefits.
Why Discord?
Discord plays a uniquely important role in the future of gaming. We're a multiplatform, multigenerational and multiplayer platform that helps people deepen their friendships around games and shared interests. We believe games give us a way to have fun with our favorite people, whether listening to music together or grinding in competitive matches for diamond rank. Join us in our mission! Your future is just a click away!
Discord is committed to inclusion and providing reasonable accommodations during the interview process. We want you to feel set up for success, so if you are in need of reasonable accommodations, please let your recruiter know.
Please see our Applicant and Candidate Privacy Policy for details regarding Discord’s collection and usage of personal information relating to the application and recruitment process by clicking HERE.
Discord San Francisco, California, USA Office
Our platform is our headquarters! Because we believe great work isn’t tied to a physical space, most of our roles offer flexibility – whether it’s from the comfort of your home (in approved locations), an inspiring office setting or a combo of both!
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