Member of Technical Staff (Software Engineer, Desktop Apps)

Perplexity
San Francisco, California, United StatesFull-timePosted Aug 26, 2026

About the role

Perplexity AI is looking for experienced Generalist Software Engineers to join our Perplexity and Comet application teams. Our team is reshaping knowledge work through our high-impact desktop and Comet apps. The ideal candidate should have strong programming skills and multiple years of experience shipping high-quality, production software. Our stack spans several different skillsets, including Rust, Kotlin, Swift, Typescript, Chromium and Perplexity’s core AI stack. We have found that our strongest engineers are capable of working across multiple codebases and ramping up quickly, and we expect the same high bar for candidates.

Responsibilities

Work closely with product teams to implement novel mobile experiences.

Work closely with design teams to design fast and intuitive UI.

Utilize Perplexity Computer and other Agentic coding tools to accelerate development.

Collaborate with data science and machine learning teams to instrument, analyze, and improve the end-to-end experience.

Work with infrastructure and QA teams on deployment processes, including testing, release, and monitoring.

Requirements

4+ years industry experience

Experience in shipping high-quality native applications

Architecture experience in writing code understandable by both agents and humans

Deep understanding of app performance

Ability to own projects and surfaces, and to push them forward proactively

Responsibilities

  • Work closely with product teams to implement novel mobile experiences
  • Work closely with design teams to design fast and intuitive UI
  • Utilize Perplexity Computer and other Agentic coding tools to accelerate development
  • Collaborate with data science and machine learning teams to instrument, analyze, and improve the end-to-end experience
  • Work with infrastructure and QA teams on deployment processes, including testing, release, and monitoring

Qualifications

  • 4+ years industry experience
  • Experience in shipping high-quality native applications
  • Architecture experience in writing code understandable by both agents and humans
  • Deep understanding of app performance
  • Ability to own projects and surfaces, and to push them forward proactively

Skills mentioned

RustKotlinSwiftTypeScriptMobile DevelopmentSystem DesignPerformance OptimizationSoftware TestingCI/CDAI Agents

About Perplexity

The most powerful answer engine. Powering curiosity with answers backed by up-to-date sources. This is where knowledge begins.

Software Development201-500 employeesSan Francisco, California

H-1B sponsorship history

Historical employer filing data was found for Perplexity. The employer record includes 23 historical certified applications. This is employer-level history, not a guarantee that this role currently offers sponsorship.