Staff Software Engineer - SDK

As a Staff Software Engineer (Swift SDK) on the SDK team, you will set the technical vision and drive the end‑to‑end delivery of Ditto's Swift SDK—empowering developers to synchronize data in real‑time across iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS. You'll design idiomatic, type‑safe Swift APIs, architect cross‑platform SDK modules, and build reliable bridges between Swift and Ditto's native Rust core using Swift/C++ interop and FFI patterns.

From day one, you will own architecture decisions, performance profiling, and release automation while mentoring engineers and shaping best practices across the mobile organization. Working closely with product, design, and backend teams, you will translate developer‑experience goals into intuitive APIs and high‑performance code. You'll collaborate with customers and support engineers to diagnose integration issues, optimize for battery, memory, and start‑up time, and iterate rapidly on feedback.

Operating in our async‑first, globally distributed culture, you will conduct thorough code reviews, champion rigorous testing and observability, and foster a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement.

What You’ll Be Up To… 

• Set technical direction and own the Swift SDK roadmap Define architecture decisions, API design patterns, and long‑term strategic initiatives. Drive consensus on technical trade‑offs and ensure alignment with Ditto's broader SDK vision.

• Design and implement Swift SDK features with excellence Deliver idiomatic, type‑safe Swift APIs that feel native to Apple developers. Lead complex feature development including async/await patterns, Combine integration, and SwiftUI support.

• Build robust native interop and FFI bridges Architect and maintain the Swift‑to‑Rust FFI layer, ensuring memory safety, thread safety, and optimal performance across all Apple platforms.

• Own quality from test to release Build comprehensive unit/integration/UI tests, profile performance with Instruments, automate releases via CI/CD, and establish robust observability and crash reporting.

• Drive engineering excellence through mentorship Conduct thorough code reviews, mentor engineers across experience levels, establish coding standards, and elevate the entire team's Swift and native development capabilities.

• Collaborate cross-functionally as a technical leader Partner with product, design, QA, and support teams to shape requirements, resolve ambiguity, and ensure customer success. Act as the Swift subject matter expert across the organization.

• Champion developer experience and SDK quality Work directly with customers to diagnose integration issues, gather feedback, and iterate on API design. Produce clear documentation, sample apps, and migration guides.

• Communicate vision and progress effectively Create design documents and RFCs for major initiatives. Share status updates, technical decisions, and blockers proactively in both sync and async channels.

• Optimize for Apple platform constraints Profile and optimize memory usage, battery consumption, binary size, and cold‑start performance. Navigate App Store requirements and platform‑specific considerations.

What Helps You Thrive…

• 8+ years building production software with a proven track record of shipping reliable, high‑performance code and leading technical initiatives

• Deep expertise in Swift with demonstrated ability to design idiomatic, type‑safe APIs that follow Apple's Human Interface Guidelines and API Design Guidelines

• Strong native interop experience building FFI bridges between Swift and C/C++/Rust, with deep understanding of memory management and thread safety across language boundaries

• Extensive testing and quality discipline including unit tests, integration tests, UI tests, and CI/CD pipeline design (XCTest, XCUITest, GitHub Actions, Fastlane)

• Track record of technical leadership including mentoring engineers, driving architecture decisions, and establishing engineering best practices

• Systems-level thinking with understanding of memory management, concurrency patterns (GCD, async/await, actors), and performance optimization

• Clear, persuasive communication—especially in async, written form including design docs, RFCs, and technical proposals

Great-to-Haves… 

• Experience building or maintaining SDKs, frameworks, or developer tools in Swift or other languages, with shipped products used by external developers

• Fluency in Rust and experience with Rust FFI, unsafe code, and cross‑platform build systems (Cargo, CMake, SPM)

• Familiarity with Ditto's other SDK languages (Kotlin, JavaScript/TypeScript, Java, C++) and cross‑platform SDK architecture patterns

• Background in peer-to-peer, offline‑first, or real‑time synchronization systems such as CRDTs, vector clocks, or distributed databases

• Proficiency with Apple development tools including Instruments, LLDB, static analyzers, and binary size optimization techniques

• Open source contributions to Swift packages, Apple frameworks, or native mobile libraries

• Experience with memory‑constrained or resource‑limited environments such as watchOS or iOS app extensions

Come join our remote team and help shape the future of real-time data sync across every edge device!

Base Salary Range

$186,000—$331,000 USD