Principal Database Engineer, Data Engineering at Gitlab

This role is designed for a heavyweight PostgreSQL expert who thrives at the intersection of database internals and distributed systems architecture. Ideally, you are a seasoned engineer who has managed massive, high-traffic data environments and possesses deep knowledge of query planning, WAL, and vacuum processes. Since this is a "Principal" level position, they are looking for someone who can not only code and debug complex production issues but also set the long-term strategic vision for sharding and multi-database support. The compensation is highly competitive, topping out at $338k (plus equity), offering a rare opportunity for high-level impact in a 100% remote, asynchronous environment. You’ll be working at the heart of an open-core leader, influencing both the SaaS platform and thousands of enterprise deployments. This is an excellent spot if you want to move away from reactive incident response toward building proactive, self-healing database frameworks using modern AI-driven workflows. **You might be a good fit if you:** * Can explain PostgreSQL internals (like the query planner or storage engine) as easily as you can write code. * Have successfully led massive database migrations or sharding projects for global-scale applications. * Enjoy a "Remote-first/Async" culture where you have high autonomy over your schedule. * Prefer building automated, self-service tools for other developers rather than just manually fixing schemas.