Lead Engineer – Platform & Infrastructure at Stream

You're a hands-on software engineering leader with a strong background in backend or platform development, particularly in Go or Python, and deep experience wit

Work type: remote

Location: Remote (EU)

Type: Full-time

Summary

You're a hands-on software engineering leader with a strong background in backend or platform development, particularly in Go or Python, and deep experience with cloud platforms like AWS or GCP. You are comfortable making independent technical decisions and actively use AI tools in your workflow. Stream is a fast-growing company powering real-time features for major apps like Strava and Bumble. This fully remote role in Europe offers a chance to significantly impact the efficiency, reliability, and cost of their real-time platform, with direct reporting to the CTO. You might be a good fit if you... * Have production ownership and cost optimization experience with AWS or GCP. * Possess deep knowledge of distributed systems and database architecture. * Are proficient with core technologies including Go, Python, Kubernetes, and Terraform. * Actively use AI tools in your engineering workflow.

Job Description

Location: Remote (Europe) OR Hybrid from Amsterdam

## About Stream

Stream powers real-time[Chat](https://getstream.io/chat/),[Video](https://getstream.io/video/),[Activity Feeds](https://getstream.io/activity-feeds/), and [AI Moderation](https://getstream.io/moderation/) for billions of end-users across thousands of apps — from Strava and Bumble to eBay and Patreon. Our platform processes billions of API requests per month and supports applications with millions of concurrent users, while delivering highly reliable, low-latency services and a great developer experience.

The Role

We're looking for a hands-on Lead Engineer to own Platform and Infrastructure at Stream. You'll work directly with a small, senior team and will be responsible for improving the efficiency, reliability, and cost profile of the systems powering Stream's entire real-time platform.

This is not an architecture-at-a-distance role. You will write code most of the time, lead infrastructure decisions across teams, and shape how we operate at scale. You'll report directly to the CTO.

Why This Role Exists

Our platform works — but we're growing fast and there's meaningful work ahead on cost optimization, cloud efficiency, and platform scalability. The team needs a strong engineering leader who comes from a software engineering background, can own technical decisions independently, and can make infrastructure move faster without introducing big-org process dependencies.

What You'll Work On

Your first 6 months will focus on three areas:

• Cloud cost optimization — identify waste, drive rightsizing, build tooling and guardrails to prevent cost regressions. We want measurable outcomes, not reports.

• Platform reliability and scalability — improve observability, define SLOs where they're missing, and harden the systems all of Stream's products depend on.

• Architecture and infra evolution — evaluate and drive decisions on Kubernetes adoption, database architecture, and cloud provider strategy (including potential migration work).

Core Technologies

Go · Python · AWS · GCP · Kubernetes · PostgreSQL · CockroachDB · Redis · Terraform · Prometheus / observability stack

Required

• Software engineering background — you built things, not just configured them. Backend or platform coding experience in Go or Python (not scripting-only).

• Strong AWS or GCP depth — production ownership, not just certifications. Experience with cloud cost optimization at scale with measurable outcomes.

• Distributed systems and database architecture — real schema decisions, replication trade-offs, latency budgets. Not just "ran Kubernetes".

• Hands-on leadership — you can lead a project and a PR in the same week. Comfortable in a team of 3–5, not dependent on large-org support structures.

• AI tooling fluency — you use AI tools actively in your engineering workflow. We screen for applied adoption, not familiarity. If you're not convinced AI is useful, this isn't the right fit.

• Kubernetes experience at meaningful production scale

• Cloud migration experience — moving workloads between providers or re-architecting for cost/performance

• Open source contributions to infra or platform tooling

• Engineering blog or conference talks on cloud, platform, or distributed systems topics

• Prior experience at an API-first or infrastructure-enabling scaleup

Being explicit saves everyone time:

• Security-heavy profiles — if compliance frameworks and security assessments are your primary domain, this isn't the right role.

• Scripting-only backgrounds — Bash, Ansible, and Terraform are tools, not an engineering foundation.

• Large-enterprise dependency — if impact required teams of 20+ or committee approval, the scope here will feel very different.

• AI skepticism — we won't spend time convincing you AI is worth adopting.

• Generous compensation

• Company equity

• 28 days PTO + Dutch public holidays

• Pension scheme

• Learning & Development budget

• Commute reimbursement to Amsterdam or company bike

• Fitness stipend

• Access to open-source project work

## Why Stream?

• High scale/ difficult engineering

• Default alive. Startup growth opportunity with healthy revenue

• Strong engineering culture. Engineering is what makes us succeed

• All managers are hands-on and capable engineers

• Edge network of servers around the world

• Great opportunity to learn and grow

• Raised $58M from leading VCs (Felicis Ventures, Notable Capital, 01.Advisors, Techstars, Arthur Ventures), including backers like Dick Costolo (01 Advisors, ex-CEO of Twitter), Olivier Pomel (CEO of Datadog), Tom Preston-Werner (Co-Founder of GitHub), Nicolas Dessaigne (Co-Founder of Algolia)

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