Software Engineer II

Software Engineer II - High Performance Computing

Who we are

The Trade Desk is a global technology company with a mission to create a better, more open internet for everyone through principled, intelligent advertising. Handling over 1 trillion queries per day, our platform operates at an unprecedented scale. We have also built something even stronger and more valuable: an award-winning culture based on trust, ownership, empathy, and collaboration. We value the unique experiences and perspectives that each person brings to The Trade Desk, and we are committed to fostering inclusive spaces where everyone can bring their authentic selves to work every day.

Do you have a passion for solving hard problems at scale? Are you eager to join a dynamic, globally connected team where your contributions will make a meaningful difference in building a better media ecosystem? Come and see why Fortune magazine consistently ranks The Trade Desk among the best -sized workplaces globally.

What we do

The High Performance Computing team at The Trade Desk builds and operates the robust, high-scale infrastructure that powers our global advertising platform. We tackle some of the most complex challenges in the industry—optimizing systems for speed, reliability, efficiency, and massive scale.

Our engineers specialize in low-level system architecture, distributed computing, and performance tuning. HPC is all about designing, building, and evolving the foundational software and infrastructure that keeps The Trade Desk running fast and cost-effectively. Team members thrive on solving hard problems, running experiments, and improving platform capabilities so millions of transactions per second happen seamlessly.

Highlights of our work:

• Architect and optimize large-scale distributed systems for best-in-class performance
• Solve deep technical problems in scale, efficiency, and reliability—often experimenting and analyzing at every layer of the stack
• Collaborate with other engineering teams to improve system designs and deliver rock-solid solutions
• Dive deep into systems programming, troubleshooting, and advanced debugging

If you’re energized by large‑scale engineering challenges, passionate about systems programming, and eager to push the limits of software at multi‑million‑QPS scale, HPC offers an opportunity to make a meaningful impact.

What you’ll do:

As a Software Engineer II on the High Performance Computing (HPC) team at The Trade Desk, you will:

• Collaborate with teammates to design, refine, and deliver large-scale distributed software systems for real-time performance, reliability, and scalability.
• Conduct experiments, deep dives, and troubleshooting to continuously improve system behavior and efficiency.
• Participate actively in code reviews, design discussions, and the evolution of technical best practices.
• Work across the stack—from runtime environments and algorithms to large-scale data handling—employing creative and analytical skills.
• Take ownership of well-defined engineering initiatives, contributing your ideas and technical expertise to push the platform forward.

We are a global team with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. To complement this team, you will welcome ideas that are different from your own and be well-versed in building from common ground to value, seek out, and foster invisible and visible dimensions of diversity.

Who you are:

Our culture is much deeper than just having fun together (though we do that well, too). We take pride in our engineers being trust-builders, generous givers, scrappy problem solvers, and gritty pursuers of excellence. You do not have to meet all the requirements below, but we believe that people who meet most of them will have a higher likelihood of succeeding in this role:

• You have a solid understanding of computer science and engineering fundamentals.
• You are trained in one or more of the following programming languages: C#, Java, C, C++, Python, SQL, or Scala.
• You have some knowledge of software development code editors: Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code, Rider, and version control systems (Git).
• You have 2+ years of software development engineering experience.
• You have a Bachelor’s/Master’s level degree in computer science or relevant engineering-related field or equivalent experience. Not everyone has the same level of access to opportunities. What is most important to us is what and how you can contribute, which is why our consideration is not limited by the level of education you have.
• You have additional nice-to-have experience in the following areas: distributed systems, database engines (Relational, NoSQL, Columnar), building micro-services, operating systems and cloud, Kubernetes, Kafka.

A variety of technical opportunities is one of the best things about working at The Trade Desk as a software engineer, which is why we do not expect you to know every technology we use when you start. What we care about is that you can learn quickly and find solutions to complex problems using the optimum tools for the job. What you know is less important than how well you learn and innovate. We are not seeking engineers who know all the answers; we need engineers who can invent answers no one has thought of yet and find answers to the questions yet to be asked.

As an Equal Opportunity Employer, The Trade Desk is committed to creating an inclusive hiring experience where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Please reach out to us at accommodations@​thetradedesk.​com to request an accommodation or discuss any accessibility needs you may require to access our Company Website or navigate any part of the hiring process.

When you contact us, please include your preferred contact details and specify the nature of your accommodation request or questions. Any information you share will be handled confidentially and will not impact our hiring decisions.