Staff Software Engineer, Video Enablement

About the role

GameChanger is building a new team dedicated to enhancing video experiences for youth sports. This role is centered on a senior software engineer who will own the design and execution of the video pipeline from initial ingest all the way through to final playback for the end user. You will be responsible for architecting the systems that power live streaming, managing transcoding workflows, and ensuring the reliability of storage and delivery mechanisms. This position requires a balance of hands-on coding, technical leadership in guiding the team, and strategic influence over the future direction of video at GameChanger. You will be a key decision-maker in selecting technologies and patterns that define how video data moves through our ecosystem.

Key facts

What you'll do

Architect and build core video features spanning the entire pipeline, encompassing live streaming, transcoding, storage, and user consumption interfaces.

Collaborate with product and engineering management to define and execute the technology roadmap for video capabilities, aligning technical strategy with business goals.

Partner with mobile, web, machine learning, and platform teams to tackle complex video processing projects that require cross-functional coordination.

Develop and connect internal SDKs and frameworks to streamline video integration for product teams, reducing friction and accelerating development.

Establish real-time monitoring and measurement systems for video workflows to ensure quality, performance, and rapid issue detection.

Mentor and guide other software engineers, sharing expertise in video and live-streaming technologies to elevate the overall team capability.

Participate in an occasional on-call rotation to support production systems, ensuring high availability and rapid response to incidents.

Evaluate and integrate new tools and libraries such as FFMpeg to enhance our processing capabilities and maintain competitive feature parity.

Design robust APIs that enable seamless communication between ingestion points, processing backends, and playback clients across diverse platforms.

Optimize streaming workflows for mobile broadcast scenarios, focusing on adaptive bitrate strategies and resilience in varying network conditions.

Requirements

Significant experience in video and audio streaming, with a focus on live streaming user-generated content in production environments.

Proven ability to architect and build scalable, high-performance video pipelines in cloud environments, with AWS experience preferred as a foundational skill.

Deep understanding of audio/video packaging formats, codecs including MPEG Video, H.264, H.265, VP9, AV1, and VVC, and their practical implications for compatibility and performance.

Mastery of streaming protocols such as HLS, DASH, RTMP, and SRT, and the ability to select the right protocol for specific use cases and constraints.

Hands-on experience with live and VOD streaming workflows, including mobile broadcast, ingest, transcoding, storage, and playback systems across web and native applications.

Proficiency in languages common in video development such as C#, Go, C++, or Python, combined with experience in Node.js/TypeScript, React, Kotlin, or Swift for building full-stack features.

Experience designing and building internal APIs and SDKs that connect different parts of the stack, enabling reuse and consistency across products.

Demonstrated experience mentoring other engineers and providing technical guidance through code reviews, design discussions, and knowledge-sharing sessions.

Familiarity with mobile video broadcasting challenges and optimizing streaming quality across various devices, screen sizes, and network conditions.

Experience with at least one video player, including integration, configuration, and customization to meet specific product requirements.

Front-end development experience in web technologies, iOS using Swift, or Android using Kotlin, with a focus on delivering smooth and responsive playback experiences.

Nice to have

Familiarity with computer vision concepts, architectures, or tools that could enhance video analysis or augmentation features.

Knowledge of video advertising systems concepts, architectures, or tools that support monetization and content delivery strategies.

Practical notes

This role is fully remote within the United States. There are specific state restrictions that prevent hiring in AK, DE, HI, IA, LA, MS, MT, OK, and SC. Candidates are asked to refrain from using AI tools during interviews and assessments to ensure the integrity of the evaluation process. Official communications regarding this role will originate exclusively from email addresses ending in @gc.com or no-reply@ashby.hq.com. The position operates within a standard full-time schedule with expectations for collaboration during business hours.