The posting
ABOUT NIANTIC SPATIAL
AI has learned from almost everything online, but it still struggles with the physical world, where 99.5% of economic activity happens. It doesn’t know where things are, how spaces fit together, or what changes over time.
That’s one of the biggest unsolved problems in AI, and it’s the one we’re solving at Niantic Spatial. We build spatial AI models and services so people and machines can reason, learn and act safely in the physical world. We turn camera imagery, video, sensor data and archives into accurate, AI-readable representations of real places that robots can train in and machines can use to know exactly where they are.
In physical AI, mistakes have real consequences. That’s why we build AI grounded in measured reality, not guesswork, so the people and machines relying on it can trust it to get things right.
Our team built some of the world’s most widely used maps. Now we’re building something bigger: a living, measured record of the real world that machines can query, learn from and use to understand how places change over time. If you want to help AI understand the world we actually live in, come build with us.
ABOUT THE ROLE
We are seeking a hands-on engineering leader to own our device-native technology organization. You will be responsible for leading both the Device SDK and Mobile Engineering teams, overseeing the development of our native SDKs, spatial computing runtimes, and flagship mobile applications.
This is a hybrid leadership role that combines people management, technical leadership, architecture, and hands-on engineering. You must be equally comfortable mentoring engineers, defining technical strategy, reviewing architecture, and contributing production code. You will bring deep experience with the latest AI technologies, work streams, and best practices, and demonstrate forward thinking about integrating AI into the SDLC.
Reporting to the Head of Product and Platform Engineering, you will serve as a key technical partner in shaping the future of Niantic Spatial’s device-native ecosystem. You will play a key role in defining technical direction, execution strategy, and platform investments across mobile, XR, robotics, and emerging edge-computing environments.
TEAMS YOU’LL LEAD
Platform SDK - Builds and operates the native technology stack that brings Niantic Spatial’s capabilities to devices, including:
- Native runtime architecture and SDK development
- Computer vision and spatial computing integrations
- Sensor fusion and device-side processing
- Platform abstraction and cross-platform architecture
- Hardware acceleration and performance optimization
- Native platform integrations for mobile, XR, robotics, and edge devices
- Build systems, release automation, and test infrastructure
Mobile Applications - Builds flagship iOS and Android applications that showcase the full potential of Niantic Spatial’s technology, including:
- Customer-facing mobile products and sample applications
- Platform capability validation and feedback
- Best-practice SDK implementations
- Mobile application architecture
- User experience and performance optimization
- Application release and lifecycle management
WHAT YOU’LL DO
TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP
- Define and drive the technical vision for Niantic Spatial’s device-native ecosystem.
- Define cutting edge AI-native development flows and guide the team to embrace best practices for agentic development
- Establish architecture, engineering standards, and development practices across both teams.
- Guide platform investments that improve developer experience, portability, performance, and scalability.
- Partner closely with Research, Platform, and Product leadership to translate emerging capabilities into production-ready products and SDKs.
- Participate directly in architecture reviews, technical design discussions, and critical implementation efforts.
- Work with Platform to align architecture patterns to ensure a cohesive product ecosystem across all surface areas
- Balance long-term platform investments with near-term product commitments.
- Ensure predictable delivery, high quality, and operational excellence across all device-native products and platforms.
HANDS-ON ENGINEERING
- Contribute production code on a regular basis.
- Review code, mentor engineers, and actively participate in technical problem solving.
- Support implementation of complex features spanning mobile applications, SDKs, native runtimes, and platform integrations.
- Assist teams with debugging, performance analysis, and system optimization.
- Maintain familiarity with day-to-day development workflows and remain actively engaged in execution.
PEOPLE LEADERSHIP
- Directly manage the leads and engineers within the Device SDK and Mobile Engineering teams.
- Recruit, mentor, and retain high-performing engineers.
- Support career growth, performance management, and technical development across both teams.
- Foster a culture of engineering excellence, ownership, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
WHAT YOU’LL BRING
- 10+ years of software engineering experience, including significant experience building and shipping native applications or SDKs.
- 5+ years of engineering leadership experience managing teams and technical leads.
- Expert-level proficiency in native software development for iOS (Swift) and Android (Kotlin).
- Strong understanding of software architecture, performance optimization, and cross-platform development.
- Experience leading engineers through complex technical initiatives while remaining hands-on.
- Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance; U.S. citizenship is required due to security clearance eligibility requirements.
- Great at building and maintaining customer relationships, with occasional travel to client locations
NICE TO HAVE
- Experience with in-app telemetry capture, analytics, and building business intelligence data streams that enable informed cross-functional decision making.
- Experience supporting government or defense customers, including familiarity with FedRAMP, GovCloud, secure deployment environments, compliance documentation, and the operational expectations of regulated customer engagements.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
The expected salary range for this role is $238,500 to $310,000 per year. Compensation also includes an annual bonus, equity, and a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision coverage, 401(k), and more.
LOCATION & WORK MODEL
This role is based at our San Francisco, CA headquarters, with four days per week in office. There might be occasional travel to customer sites, partner organizations, and engineering off-sites.
INCLUSIVE APPLICATION
We know the strongest candidates don’t always tick every box. If you’re excited about this role and believe you could do it well, we encourage you to apply even if your experience doesn’t match every qualification listed — you may be exactly who we’re looking for.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
Niantic Spatial is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals seeking employment at Niantic Spatial are considered without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, creed, age, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), marital status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, or any other protected category under applicable laws. Niantic Spatial will also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in accordance with applicable laws. Please contact your recruiter if you want to request an accommodation for the job application or interview process.
CANDIDATE PRIVACY
I understand that by submitting my job application, the information I provide as part of that application will be used in accordance with Niantic Spatial’s Privacy Notice for Job Applicants and Candidates https://www.nianticspatial.com/applicant-privacy-notice.
